Forget Your Running
by Llayth
Summary: Santa Carla Undead #2: Bonnie wants nothing to do with Marko's world. Unfortunately, refusing means death and the boys, including Marko, would be very willing to get rid of her. Maybe there is a way to keep herself alive a bit longer but she risks fighting against her own dark side. (Set during film.)
1. Chapter 1

**As promised, here's the first chapter of the sequel to See No Evil. :) Updates this time will have to be weekends only since my new lectures are 9-5 and I don't get back home until 6. Hope you enjoy reading!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own The Lost Boys. OCs, however, are mine. Credit to Placebo's_ Infra-Red_ for the story title.**

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><p>She had once been asked to choose between day and night. Back then it was supposed to have been a casual conversation. A simple way of getting to know the person she was dating. So she had chosen night. It was an innocent answer for an innocent question that now, in hindsight, had been regrettable and completely naïve. But that's what the night used to be. It used to be fun and relaxing. It was the time when people could temporarily throw away the stress of work or school. It was the time when people came home from work to chill out or go out and cut loose.<p>

But if someone would ask her again, Bonnie would choose day. Night was ugly. Evil. A mere mask of wildness and fun to hide the real danger. That brutal, cold night that most residents of Santa Carla only got a glimpse of in the news when someone had been murdered or disappeared.

Bonnie had done more than glimpse. She had witnessed it right in front of her eyes. That monstrosity and viciousness. She had felt the blood slap her in the face, cling to her hair and clothes. She had watched the life slowly disappear from a person's eyes. She had heard the wails and the shrill, terrified screams. She had seen a dead body, staring blankly at her.

And, more frightening than anything else, she had seen the monster responsible.

He had not been human.

He was a creature she thought only existed in lore and fiction. But she knew they were real now. And here. Lurking in the shadows of Santa Carla, pretending to be human when they blended in with the crowds. Luring in victims who perceived them as normal, teenage boys.

_Just like they did with Debbie, _Bonnie thought.

Debbie… Somebody. She had never found out her last name. To be honest, she never could stomach turning on the news in case she saw a report of the girl's murder. It would only bring in more guilt and nightmares and she was dealing with plenty of both already. Hiding away from these vampire problems suited her. Maybe in time she could forget about the whole thing or go into denial.

_Even though it's been just over a week and I still haven't, _she thought. She cringed, letting her head flop back on the sofa. It was the third day of the summer holidays. She had been looking forward to that Tuesday when her last exam had finished and she could start enjoying her freedom. But after the events of last week the summer had been ruined. She was hiding, living in fear.

Knowing about vampires was the worst thing to have knowledge of. It had been haunting her mind, making her see shadows in her room, corners, and dark backstreets. The noise of the wind would be their howling. The tree branch tapping at windows upstairs would be their fingernails scraping at the glass. Everything became vampire related. Noises, movements… they were never anything logical. It wasn't really the trees. It wasn't really the wind.

Vampires. It _had _to be them.

Paranoia was glued to her like an unwanted shadow. Stuck and never letting go. A floorboard creaking would send her jumping and grabbing a cross. When the doorbell rang at night that was her cue to run straight into her bedroom, cowering behind the door with a stake and Holy water in her tight grip. Bedtime saw her closing all curtains, making sure every window was locked, and she would fall asleep completely covered and hidden by her duvet. The light would be on, keeping the darkness and shadows away from her room.

She huddled up in her blanket, trying to let the film on television distract her from these fears. But after two weeks she was plagued by this new world that stayed in her head. There was no escaping it.

And when you had two friends who claimed they were skilled vampire hunters it made it even harder to escape.

Just as she expected it was almost midnight and someone was knocking on the door. She heard the familiar muttering and groaned as she stood up. She trudged over to the door, pulling the fluffy blanket tight around her and she opened it, facing the Frog brothers with a scowl.

"No," she snapped.

They stood there with stakes and Holy water in their hands.

"You know about vampires. And you have information on Marko. We need your assistance in staking them," Edgar said. "Stop being stubborn, soldier, and arm yourself. We're going on a hunt."

"Fuck _ooooff_," she groaned, letting her head rest against the door. "I am _not _going to be a vampire hunter. I don't want any part of it."

"You have a duty."

"Ed, I have no duty! Stop acting like it's compulsory for me. It's _not_. I want a normal life." Her clipped toned softened and her eyes widened at him. "_Please._"

"I understand it's hard to get used to –."

"Bullshit. No, you don't."

"You're right. I don't actually understand why you're acting like this. You can be a hero, you know."

She rolled her eyes. "Oh great. Just what I've _always_ wanted."

Alan stepped forward. "Marko and his little gang are out killing innocent people right now. And they do that every night. You see all those missing posters? That's down to vampires. That's down to _him_."

Her eyes were hot and watery. "Alan…"

"You've seen the latest one. A girl who was _thirteen years old_."

She sniffed and rubbed at her eyes.

Edgar cocked an eyebrow. "Think Marko might have been her killer?"

She gritted her teeth. "_Don't make me think about that._"

"I know it's bothering you. So help us," Alan said.

"Of course it bothers me! I _dated_ him and I had feelings for him. But they know I know about them so I am not stepping foot outside at night willingly. What could I do if they got me alone? I can't fight; I don't even know how to! I could actually die and I'm only seventeen. The only person I'm protecting is myself."

Edgar scowled at her. "That's quite selfish –."

"Tough shit." And she slammed the door in their faces. Edgar and Alan turned to each other, both frowning with Edgar shrugging at his younger brother. Alan waited for the orders.

"Well? What now?"

"We're on our own," said Edgar and beckoned Alan to follow him. "Might as well get used to that and I guess it's better this way. We're the only ones who care about this town and stopping the threats. And we're the only ones willing to put an end to this vampire menace in Santa Carla. We'll be our own team. Right, Alan?"

"Right."

"We'll have to keep our eyes out. We're getting nothing from Bonnie about Marko and his band of bloodsuckers. She's made it quite clear she's only looking out for herself. It's up to us to keep a watch on this town and try and get information ourselves about this gang."

"We know what Marko looks like. But I've only seen the others he hangs out with a couple of times. As for their hiding place… no clue." He looked back at Bonnie's house, mounting his bicycle as he did so. There was no sign of her peering out to see them walk away or even the sight of her running out to them with a change of heart.

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><p>With a moody pout plastered on her face, Bonnie flicked through the channels. It was almost midnight and her parents were still out. She never begrudged her parents taking the odd Friday night to treat themselves to a meal for two. Considering the work load they usually had that left them busy it was nice to see them have a break to spend some time together while Bonnie enjoyed having the house to herself or using it to sneak out and hang around the Boardwalk.<p>

But it was different this time. She was alone with vampires stalking around Santa Carla and she felt like she was in the middle of a horror film. There was no way she could get to sleep by herself. The house was empty and silent; so quiet you could hear the dripping of a tap in the kitchen and any creaking noises that the house made had become twice as loud. Like somebody was walking around in her house.

Maybe someone was. But she had already checked five times, going to every window in the house to see if they were still locked and going to the front and the back door. Nobody was there despite the arguments she had with herself every time those creaks came back. She always went back to believing she was being watched.

She continued to stay huddled in her blanket with the lights on, the curtains closed, and the door closed completely. And she vowed she would continue to stay in that position until her parents came home and eased her nerves a little.

Hopefully they would return soon because her eyelids were getting heavy and she was constantly yawning.

_I hate this, _she thought and thought back to the time when her world seemed completely normal. How she missed it. Not being afraid of the dark… hearing a creaking noise upstairs and ignoring it… being alright with having a window open…

Her only problems in life had been typical ones. Well, except for possible MS. Now even that seemed trivial compared to the monsters out there in the world. A condition she would probably learn to deal with, eventually accepting the change with the support of her family and friends. Not a nice change but at least she would have people around her to help her come to terms with it and have people to talk to.

Who could she talk to about this? Edgar and Alan were out of the question. They would suggest the only way to deal with vampires was to kill them and proceed in lecturing her about having a responsibility as if their lives were a comic book. Rather than viewing as her Bonnie, a seventeen year old human girl, they were viewing her as a potential superhero. What could she do? Dance a vampire to death?

There was no-one else to tell. Definitely not her parents. Her friends would think she had gone completely insane. She would end up seeing a therapist and be viewed as a crazy girl at school. All she had to do was take a look at the way Edgar and Alan were treated and it told her sternly that telling people was out of the question.

She also knew telling anyone would result in a hunt. She was already a threat to Marko's gang simply by knowing they were all vampires. If she told anyone else and they believed her, it would be putting them in the same danger she was in.

Bonnie sighed and rubbed at her temples. All this secrecy and hiding was going to be too much considering there was still a way to go before she could leave for college. If she even survived the next year, that is. How could she persuade a paranoid vampire gang that she really, _truly _wasn't intent on exposing them and there was absolutely no reason to kill her? Could Marko care about her enough to let her live and trust she would not say anything? Or by turning her back on him was that it? Was she now an enemy, no matter how she planned on behaving?

_Fuck's sake, how the hell did I get involved in all this? How do I get myself out of it?_

If she had the balls to, she would march right up to Marko and scream at him. Yell at him for getting her into this danger. It was his fault, after all. How dare he strut around the Boardwalk, looking for some girl to turn like freaking Dracula? Girls weren't his brides and Bonnie had her own future. One she had picked out for herself and he came along ready to change all that. All because of… what? His dick needed some action? Rather than screwing human girls and leaving them for dead he was after someone to use for his vampire biker image permanently?

She thought back to that girl she had met. Star? Was that her name? David's _chick._

_Urgh, poor thing was just labelled a 'chick'. No identity, just the gang leader's prize possession for his image. Was that what Marko intended me to be? _

She felt sick at the thought of being a vampire. How could Marko convince himself she would have chosen that life and enjoyed it? Seeing Marko murder two people without any remorse was a nightmare. It never escaped her memory. That image of him biting into that girl's neck always wormed its way into her nightmares. He had been so… inhuman. One minute he had been an angelic looking young man with bright blue eyes and a cheeky smile; the next a snarling, demonic monster that greedily guzzled down blood as if he had been starved for years. And he didn't seem to care that she was in that car as well watching it. There had been no shame.

"Eurgh!" she gagged and stood up, feeling sick at the memories of dating him. Constantly looking around her, she made her way upstairs to the bathroom without any monsters jumping out at her.

Speaking of monsters, how much of a zombie did she look at the moment?

The girl in the mirror was a complete mess. An unrecognizable Bonnie. For starters, her hair was in desperate need of a wash. She picked at the roots of her copper hair, cringing at the greasiness of them but at the same time she didn't feel like she wanted to do anything about it for now. Her face was weary and so pale her freckles seemed darker and stood out more. Dark circles were under her eyes. A few spots had started to break out on her chin that she shrugged off. Her chapped lips had tiny cuts in them thanks to all the frantic biting she had done to them recently.

A complete mess but, again, that seemed such a trivial thing to worry about at the moment.

A little huff escaped her lips and she ran the tap, cupping her hands underneath it bringing the cool water up to her face. It did not make much of a difference to how she was currently feeling but she felt fresher.

Of course it suddenly seemed all for nothing when the doorbell rang and she was ready to start sweating. Now there was a knock.

_Please, God, no. Not them, _she thought.

Who would come to her house at this time? Family? No. If it was an emergency her aunts and uncles would ring the house. She had not ordered any food. Her parents had their keys. Edgar and Alan had got the message. Why would a neighbour come round to the house?

But then again, why would vampires ring the doorbell and knock? They had powers. Those things would force their way in. Probably turn into mist and sneak in through the crack underneath the door.

Her grip on the rim of the sink tightened and she looked out of the bathroom, straight down the stairs and towards the front door. She never budged. The doorbell rang again and more frantic knocking.

"Bonnie?"

The person was female. A girl with a worried, urgent tone. She knocked on the door again.

Bonnie's first hysterical thought revolved around ghosts and how it was the angry spirit of Debbie come to get revenge. Furious that Bonnie had failed in saving her, she had returned from the grave to haunt her.

"Bonnie, it's Star! Can we talk?"

Star? Oh, David's chick. But wasn't she one of them? A vampire? Evil and murderous just like the boys?

"I know you're in there. Let me in. Please? I haven't got much time."

"What do you want?" Bonnie called, marching straight to the door. She stopped on her way there to retrieve an umbrella from the cupboard. Probably a ridiculous choice of weapon but holding it tightly in her hands made her feel safer. At least she had something to hit Star with if she tried to kill her.

"To talk. About Marko, David… all of them." After a long pause she said in a much quieter voice. "I need your help."

"You're one of them," Bonnie snapped.

"I'm not! Well… sort of… yes. But I'm not like them! I'm still part human."

"If you want to talk then you can stay on that side of the door."

"I won't hurt you. I promise. I… I hate them too, you know. You know what Marko wanted to do to you? David did the same thing to me. I showed interest and he turned me."

Bonnie held her umbrella up. "If you try anything, I'm going to stake you." Cursing under her breath she then unlocked the door and Star darted in. Bonnie quickly locked it again and peered out to make sure Star was alone.

"No-one followed me. At least I hope they didn't," Star said.

"Oh_ that's_ comforting."

"Locks won't help you keep them out. They can get in anyway." She settled herself in the living room, collapsing on an armchair.

"Again… comforting." Bonnie followed her in and chose the sofa that was far away from the vampire… half vampire… whatever she was. "Marko came in uninvited once. I guess the invitation rule doesn't apply."

"I don't think it does. Sorry."

"So what did you want to talk about?"

"You're the first person I've been able to talk to about this situation. I need your help."

"So you said. But for what?"

"I won't be a full vampire until I make my first kill. There's still a chance that I can reverse this transformation I'm going through."

Bonnie shrugged. "What's this got to do with me?"

Star looked at her with wide eyes as if she expected Bonnie to know the answer to that already.

"I need you to help me become human again."

Bonnie stared at the girl for a while before chuckling and shaking her head. "What?"

"I need you to help me become human again," Star repeated calmly.

"Are you freaking serious?"

Star blinked; opening and closing her mouth before finally speaking. "Of course I am."

"How the hell can I help you?"

"There's a limit to what I can do –."

Bonnie rolled her eyes and sneered. "You sound like there's _nothing _you can do."

"I'm getting weaker. I can't go out in daylight at all now. By the time the sun comes up I'm already asleep. It almost blinds me to walk out into the light. And David keeps a tight reign on me. He watches whatever I do."

"You seem to be sneaking off fine right now," Bonnie muttered.

"They've gone to hunt."

Bonnie shook her head. Why were people begging her for help lately?

"Please, Bonnie. You don't know what the hunger is like. It's _killing _me. Every night that need for blood gets stronger and I am _so _close to giving in. Have you seen them when they hunt? When they show their true nature? It's monstrous. I refuse to be like that. And there's Laddie too. He's only a little boy. You have to help us both."

"Laddie? That kid that hangs out with them? I saw his missing poster a couple of weeks back."

"They snatched him."

"Do I want to hear the rest of the story?"

Star sighed. "He'd got lost on the Boardwalk one night and wandered off too far. He caught Dwayne feeding off someone who was supposed to be my victim but I hadn't been able to go through with it. I begged Dwayne not to kill him so we took him back to the cave and turned him."

When she looked up, Bonnie's mouth was twisted, a sickened scowl on her face. "Don't judge me. You know what it's like with them. If you know, you're a threat. What was I supposed to do? Let him get killed? I look after that boy."

There were hot, angry tears welling up in Bonnie's eyes. "That's still a little boy who's been taken away from his family. You should have done more."

"It was the only way I thought I could save him. If I thought for one second that David would actually spare the kid's life I would have taken him back home."

"But it's turn or die?"

"That's what they do. Anyone who gets interested in them, involved in any way, they'll consider turning them. They'll mess with them and see how far they'll go. It's all fun and games. Turning innocent humans and watching them become just like them. They get a kick out of it."

"Do they even care about the human if they're supposed to be in a relationship with them?" Bonnie asked.

Star shook her head sadly. "Oh, Bonnie. I'm sorry but I don't think they are capable of loving someone the way a human can. Like I said, it's a game. If you turn, welcome to the family. If you don't, they'll get rid and find someone else."

When she saw the tiny droplets of tears dripping from Bonnie's eyes, Star reached for a tissue box on the coffee table and passed it to the young girl. She took it, mumbling a 'thank you' and pulled one tissue out to dab at her eyes.

"Why did Marko bother putting me through all that? Going on these dates and acting like my boyfriend? Like he was a normal boy?"

Star shrugged. "It got you interested in him. Spending all that time with him made you get attached. I made the same mistake and I'm paying for it. I know that. But I want to do something about it. I just…"

Bonnie narrowed her eyes. "You just can't do it by yourself."

"Right. I know there has to be a way of turning back. I just can't get the information I need."

"I'm already on David's 'to die' list. I don't think I should be doing anything that pisses him off even more."

"Marko is making sure he backs off. He wants you turned."

"He's spent the last two weeks persuading David not to kill me?"

"I think he's spent the last week letting you grow paranoid as you wait for them to come to kill you. Hopes you'll get fed up of living in fear."

Bonnie felt her blood boil. "I hate that bastard."

"So, are you going to help me? All I need you to do is gather information. You have places open at day. Libraries and book shops that I can't get to. And we can meet up when I know it's safe and you can tell me what I need to do."

"You know, you have a nerve ordering me about like this and expecting me to do the dirty work for you. It's your mistake. _ You_ fix it. Don't think for a second that I'm here to protect and help you. I have my own problems and my own ass to look out for."

Nodding slowly at her words, Star stood up.

"I'm sorry I bothered you."

Before Bonnie could answer there was a gush of wind and Star had vanished. The door was wide open and unlocked. A sight that made Bonnie sick.

"Fuck, they move fast." And she raced to the door to lock it up again.

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><p><strong>Comments are always appreciated. :)<strong>


	2. Chapter 2

**Thank you to everyone who reviewed and/or reviewed the first chapter! I'm also grateful for anyone who has already followed and favourited the story. Really means a lot and I'm glad people have been enjoying it so far! :)  
><strong>

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><p>"Bonnie, is everything okay?"<p>

"Mmm."

Mrs Casey ignored her sundae and gazed at her daughter. Bonnie sat hunched up in the booth, poking at her frozen yogurt but not taking one bite of it. Her hair hung down, almost covering her face completely while her mouth was twisted into a sulky frown.

"You did well today, honey."

"Mmm."

Mrs Casey sighed and took another bite of her sundae. "Have you told anyone yet?"

Bonnie glanced up. "About what?"

"The MS."

"No. It isn't confirmed yet."

"You know, Bernice and Bridget have been constantly ringing. Edgar and Alan are always at the door. Honey, it's been weeks since you've been out and seen anyone. I'm getting worried."

Bonnie shrugged and looked away from her dessert. She rested her head against the glass next to her and stared outside. Mrs Casey waited for a reply but her daughter remained silent and blank. A former shell of the bubbly, outgoing girl she was a week ago. Now she was lucky if Bonnie said a word. She just hung about in the house, wrapped up in pyjamas and blankets, and either watching endless television or staying locked up in her room. She never returned her friends' calls and ignored Edgar and Alan when they tried to visit her.

"I know MS is hard to deal with –."

"_If _I have it."

"Bonnie, you have to start accepting this. One of my clients has MS. I know the signs when I see it."

Bonnie idly shook her head. "There's just too much to accept."

"I know it's hard. You wanted a career in theatre and I know you had dreams of being on the stage," She paused to take Bonnie's hand. "Honey, you still have a future. It might have to be a different one but I'll help you. We'll figure out what you'll be able to do."

_Oh, Mom, _Bonnie thought. That wasn't what she meant. MS was becoming the least of her problems. Right now she had a vampire gang on her tail, one of them being a psycho ex-boyfriend. Her future probably didn't involve dealing with an illness or figuring out alternative careers that she could work for. Her frantic mind was too busy imagining her tombstone.

She forced a smile on her face. Not reaching her eyes but it was the best she could do and she squeezed her mother's hand.

"Thanks," she said and began to eat her yogurt but still didn't enjoy it. She forced the spoonful down her throat. When she noticed her mother's lips parting, ready to continue the subject, she jumped to her own topic. "So when are we visiting Grandma?"

"Visiting? We're not doing that this summer."

"Why not?"

"She's on holiday, remember? Your grandpa wanted to treat her to a cruise for her birthday. We decided to see her at Thanksgiving instead."

"Yeah, but, she's not on holiday for the whole summer, right?" Bonnie shrank in her seat. Typical. The first time she would happily leave Santa Carla and it was not going to happen. Visiting Grandma had been something to look forward to. It was going to give her a few weeks away from this hell town and its inhuman residents. Nothing permanent but to just get away from it all for a few weeks would have helped her nerves a little. Buy her a bit of time.

"What about everyone else? Aunt Maggie and Uncle Wes? How about dad's folks?"

"Go all the way to Australia? Honey, that's very expensive. Now what's with this sudden desire to go somewhere? I usually have to drag you out of Santa Carla kicking and screaming so we can visit relatives. Trust me, I am fully aware you think it's a serious crime to take you away from home and friends."

Bonnie went back to stabbing her dessert again. "Just thought it'd be nice to get away for a bit."

"Get away with everything you're facing here?"

"Could say that."

"Honey, I know you want to run away from this. But you can't do that. The doctors are quite convinced you have MS and if you do, ignoring it isn't going to help. That's why your father and I are here. And your friends once you're ready to tell them. We're here to help you accept and work around it."

"Facing things isn't that easy. Especially when it's ruining my life," Bonnie said.

"Like I said, that's why you have your friends and family. You can face this." Her mother smiled and reached to pat her daughter's hand again. "You're not going to eat that?" She nodded to the yoghurt.

Bonnie shook her head and pushed the tub away from her. "Sorry. Haven't had an appetite lately."

"It's okay. Right, I'll quickly go to the bathroom and we'll go home. Or we can wander around the Boardwalk? Go to the mall? Might be good for you to get some fresh air."

"Boardwalk sounds good. But can we avoid the comic shop?"

"Still avoiding Edgar and Alan?"

"Yeah. There's just a ton of crap that they keep going on at me for. Quitting my job is one of them." Bonnie rolled her eyes. "Their rants are the last thing I need to face right now."

She collected her bag, hugging it to her chest, as her mother went to the bathroom. She sat in silence, alone, looking out of the window and enjoying every minute of that sun. It gave her a little bit of comfort. The sun meant the monsters were hidden away. Plus it was also nice to be out in it rather than staying cooped up inside. The sun was warm on her skin and the air was fresh with a light breeze. Well, in town it was. When you got closer to the ocean there was always a stench coming from it. It was worse on the road outside Santa Carla that led into town. Anyone coming in would be greeted by the odour. That sickening stench of death. It was a perfect smell to accompany the town's status of Murder Capital of the World. After finding out about vampires, Bonnie had wondered if she really was smelling death. All the victims of Marko's gang.

"Mom, it _stinks._ I've been to the coast before and I'm pretty sure it's not supposed to smell like that."

"Well, it's the same smell I've known since I was a kid."

"Doesn't make it normal."

The arrival of a family broke the peaceful and silent nature of the diner. The kid who moaned about the smell sulked as he chose a booth. He slid across the seat to the window, making room for an older boy who Bonnie assumed to be a brother and the mother went to collect menus.

"This air is going to make me sick," he gagged.

"Sam, if you're going to sit there and complain we'll just go straight to Grandpa's. You can forget your ice cream," his mother said with a sigh.

"Be a good boy for Mommy now or no chocolate for you," the elder brother mocked. The youngest son, Sam, flicked him on the nose. The other boy responded by hitting him repeatedly with the menu and they both sat there laughing as they kept this mock fight going on.

"Sam! Michael! Boys, no fighting!" She grabbed the menu of Michael and her cheeks blushed in embarrassment. "I can't take you anywhere these days. Fighting all the time! Either you sit and eat desserts or we'll just go straight home." She quickly turned to the staff behind the counter and mouthed an apology at them.

"I thought we were going to Grandpa's Crazy Old Man cabin?" Sam joked.

"Yes. _Home_," the mother said and passed them the menus when she was sure they had settled down. She sat opposite them and scanned the treats. "Boys, the divorce hasn't left me with much. You're both aware of that. We're lucky to have a place to stay."

"In the Murder Capital of the world," Michael murmured.

Sam frowned. "Say what?"

The mother sighed. "Oh, Michael."

"I saw in on the back of the welcome board. It said 'Murder Capital of the World'."

"Michael, you'll scare your brother. Don't say things like that."

Bonnie snorted. Said a lot about the town if the older brother could figure out how creepy the town was straight away.

_Well, they are going to enjoy this place_, she thought, sarcastically. _Days of bright sunshine and warmth replaced by nights of hunting and brutal killing. _

Then she stopped feeling amused and actually thought about the family. They were obviously new to town and, like most of the citizens here, did not know what was lurking around the streets at night. How long would they survive? Any of them could be dead the next night.

She sighed. Poor people.

"Ready to go?" Mrs Casey asked.

Bonnie nodded. Her bag strap was thrown over her head, resting on her shoulder. She followed her mother out, glancing at the family as she passed them. They didn't notice her, all too busy drooling over the menu. Bonnie left the diner, heart sinking for this new family and hoped they weren't going to get into any trouble.


	3. Chapter 3

A smile finally formed on Bonnie's face when they reached the Boardwalk. Most of the people were enjoying the beach, grouping up together as they surfed or laid on their picnic blankets. Bonnie leaned over the pier railing, looking out to sea and enjoying the view of the horizon. A gentle breeze stirred loose strands of hair and she sighed as it cooled her skin.

Now and again, despite it being daytime, she kept looking back, watching her mother as she wandered through the market stalls. The sun was out but she was still convinced that something would snatch her mother and kill her.

Groaning, Bonnie faced the sea again and hung her head. It was daytime. Her mother was fine. She _needed _to remember that.

And she was trying to until a hand grabbed her shoulder.

Bonnie screamed, loud enough to make the crowds around her stop dead. They all froze, her mother whirled around, and eyes went straight to the culprit who had dared to come up to a young girl.

Bridget stared back at everyone, wide eyed and looking like she wanted to crawl into a hole.

"Oh my god, Brid!" Bonnie sighed, leaning against the railings and placed her palm against her chest.

"Who did you think I was? Jason Voorhees?"

"I'm sorry, I didn't expect that." She bit her lip and laughed nervously. "Haven't seen you in a while."

"It feels like years. None of us have seen you. Me, Leon, Bernice… where have you been hiding?"

"Sorry," Bonnie sighed and accepted Bridget's arms. They linked and Bridget started guiding her away, to the delight of Mrs Casey and she watched her daughter walk off with a friend and a smile on her face.

"Seriously, what's going on? We've tried calling but your mom keeps telling us you're busy or not feeling well."

"I told her to say that. I haven't been seeing anyone since school ended."

"Why? Bernice has been freaking out."

"Just… life."

She glimpsed at Bridget in the corner of her and saw the stern, raised eyebrow look that Bridget and Bernice Teahan were too good at. The kind of look teachers at school gave when her when she was disappointing them.

"Marko," Bonnie sighed. "He turned out to be a bastard."

"You should have called."

"I didn't really want to talk about it."

"And all this boyfriend trouble was the reason you haven't spoken to or seen any of us?"

Her eyebrow was still raised. The story wasn't good enough.

"It really got to me," Bonnie mumbled and shrugged. That was the best answer she was going to give Bridget and they had a short staring contest until her friend was the first to crack.

"Okay, you're not talking," she said. "But phone Bernice? She's worried sick about you."

"Tonight," Bonnie promised and nudged her shoulder against Bridget's. "I think it's time to come out of my hiding place a bit. So, have I missed anything interesting?"

"Everything's been typically uneventful. Bernice and Leon are as sickeningly romantic as always. Charlotte has been dragging me to the comic book store now and again for an excuse to talk to Alan. He's still failing to notice her and understand why she tries to talk to him a lot. So I've been playing the shoulder to cry on. _A lot. _Could you please talk to that boy and tell him to get the hint?"

"I would but I'm sort of avoiding Alan and Edgar."

"You haven't even spoken to_ them_?"

"They're not exactly the best when you're in a shitty situation."

"Mmm. I can actually imagine that."

"They weren't supportive of Marko and when he did turn out to be…" She paused, her mind working to try and find the right word, something other than vampire.

"To be…?" Bridget pressed.

"He was more trouble than I thought," Bonnie finally said. "Alan and Edgar could see that but I didn't listen to them. Then I found out what Marko was really like but they were still dicks about it. All 'I told you so' and that."

"I don't know them as well you do but that doesn't surprise me." Then she hip bumped Bonnie. "You could have talked to me or Bernice. We're a good team. Bernice does the advice and talking; I go out and punch whoever the hell upset my friend."

Bonnie had to laugh. "Don't go looking for a fight with Marko. He's pretty violent. More violent than your bitch slapping."

Her friend took her arm back and started dancing around her, punching the air.

"I think I could be pretty intimidating. Pow! Hah!" She jumped in the air, kicking her leg out and for a split second Bonnie actually thought her friend was looking pretty Karate Kid until she landed, lost her footing and fell backwards. No-one around them batted an eyelid at the flailing girl falling to the floor or when Bonnie collapsed against the railings in a fit of giggles.

It felt good, standing there and letting every snicker, snort and chuckle out. The last time she had properly laughed last this felt like it had been years ago. Her troubles floated to the back of her head for a split second. The only thing she was focusing on was the picture of Bridget lying on the ground, rolling onto her side as she joined in with Bonnie's laughter.

Amazing how much laughing could clear one's head.

"Oh god," Bonnie sighed, wiping tears away from her eyes. Bridget was standing up now, walking over to lean against the railings with her face red.

"You know what? I needed that." Bonnie smiled and Bridget snorted.

"You needed me to lay there like a flailing fool? Thanks."

"I needed to laugh."

"Apparently I amuse people well," Bridget said and smirked. "Hey, phone Bernice tonight and we'll all go out somewhere and do something. Mall, movie, meal out, just think of something. You, me, Bernice, and I'll drag Charlotte out. I think she could do with a girl's night out. Distract her from drooling over Alan." She gagged and rolled her eyes.

"Make it a girl's _day_ out," Bonnie said and reached over to give her a hug. "First thing I'll do when I get home."

"Promise?"

Bonnie smiled. "Cross my heart. I'll see you later."

"Don't you want to stay? There's a concert later on tonight. Some saxophone player."

"No. Marko usually comes to the Boardwalk at night. Edgar and Alan are also working tonight. Lots of people I want to avoid."

Bridget pouted as Bonnie waved and started walking back to the book stall her mother was browsing through.

"Sure you don't want me to bitch slap one of them?" Bridget called.

Bonnie snorted and shook her head. "No bitch slapping!"

Her mother had a huge beam on her face when she joined her at the book stall. "You look like your old self again."

"I think I'm going to get the girls together. Bridget's orders."

"Genius idea," her mother said. "I think you should listen to Bridget." She wrapped an arm around her daughter and kissed her on top of her head. "I'm glad she's cheered you up a bit. Okay, groceries first and then we'll head home?"

"Good plan," Bonnie said and started to follow her mother away, until she caught a glimpse of a book and stopped. The cover was dark with red spindly letters on front spelling out 'Vampire'. Her hand instinctively went to her bag, barely touching her purse when she shook her head and continued to follow her mother.

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><p><strong>Feel free to leave a review! I'll be updating next Saturday. <strong>


	4. Chapter 4

**Just actually dawned on me that I'm away this weekend and probably wouldn't have time to update like I promised. So here's chapter four now. Thank you to readers, reviewers, and new follows/favourites. :)**

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><p>The crowds were wild and singing along. The beach and Boardwalk were packed, the bins were alight with paper, alcohol, and whatever else people had scavenged to set them on fire. Speakerphones had been set up all across the beach so the concert echoed everywhere. It sounded amazing and fun.<p>

Yet Bridget had been dragged to lurk outside the comic book store, something that was starting to become too much of a routine. Her friend, Charlotte, was counting the money in her purse as Bridget stood against Laffing Sal. She had a permanant scowl on her face as she sighed at her friend.

"Char, you need to give it up."

"I'm buying a comic for Tina," Charlotte replied.

"You're trying to get him to talk to you again."

"I'm buying a comic for Tina," Charlotte repeated and grabbed Bridget's hand. "Come on."

"You need to stop taking this 'empowered woman' advice from Emily. I don't think your sister meant stalking the guy. It's making you look obsessed."

Charlotte rolled her eyes as she went to a stack of comics on sale. She flicked through quickly but her eyes kept darting to Alan who was at the counter serving customers with his usual silence and poker-faced expression.

"It's not an obsession. I'm just being confident enough to make the moves and showing him I'm interested."

"You've been showing him you're interested for three years now. He doesn't get the hints or he isn't interested. Not worth it either way."

Charlotte grabbed three comics from the bargain pile and made her way over to the counter, leaving Bridget standing there to browse through all the comics; all colourful with a bunch of superheroes she had never even heard of. She opened one up, a comic about some dude called Iron Man and scanned through the pages, at the same time keeping an eye on Charlotte who stood behind the customer Alan was currently serving and bit her lip in eagerness.

_What is it about boyfriends and relationships that turn people weird? _Bridget thought and rolled her eyes.

It happened to her sister and Charlotte. Bernice was a gooey mess with Leon and Charlotte was spending more and more of her time trying to find excuses to talk to Alan. It also sounded like Bonnie's recent boyfriend had only given her trouble. None of them had made romance look good at all. The idea of dating that confusing male gender sent Bridget shuddering and gagging.

"Are you going to buy anything? Or are you going to keep crinkling up our comics?" a gruff voice asked. Bridget turned to see Edgar Frog glaring at her from behind a pillar.

"I'm waiting for a friend," she snapped back. How did Bonnie ever manage to befriend these two?

"Then you can wait for your friend at the counter," he said curtly. His nostrils flared when he looked down at the comic Bridget had in her hands. "You've crinkled a page."

She glanced down where the corner of one page had been pressed between her index finger and thumb. Like Edgar had said, it had creased slightly from the pressure of her grip. Still, it was nothing that Bridget thought was a crime until she saw the hardened glare Edgar was well-known for and realised, in the eyes of this comic book nut, she had committed a deadly sin. Sighing, she dug into the pocket of her jeans.

"Okay, dude, don't have a cow. I'll buy it if it prevents you from having a heart attack over it," she growled and waved a note at him. "No wonder Bonnie doesn't talk to you anymore."

Charlotte was being served when Bridget joined the queue. She was trying to ask Alan how his summer was going and what he was going to get up to but he all he did was give short, clipped answers. Now she was going into one of her rambles as she talked about everything she would be getting up to. Bridget was hanging her head as she listened to her friend talk... and talk... and _talk. _She leaned against the counter, all big smiles and… oh dear god, there was now hair twisting involved. Alan stood there with a bag in his hand, outstretched as he waited silently for Charlotte to stop talking and take the bag of him.

"My older sister, Emily, came back home for the summer. She's at college in Virginia so we've been catching up. It's great having her here – oh, but the comics aren't for her, they're for my younger sister, Tina, who's still in Middle school –."

"I'm going grey waiting here and Bernice will be waiting for us at the beach," Bridget interrupted loudly. She stood there, pursed lips and tapping foot, as Charlotte jumped and glanced back at her friend. She frowned at the comic in her hand.

"You're buying a comic?"

"_Trying to buy_. Are you going to take those?" Bridget asked, nodding to Alan's outstretched hand and Charlotte's cheeks turned a deep red.

"Oh, sorry. I didn't realise," she muttered, grabbing it and shuffling aside. "You hate comics."

"I'm being forced to buy this," she said and glanced at Alan who had taken the comic off her. "Your brother was about to have me arrested for crinkling the pages."

He held it up, examining the crease. "You _have_ ruined it, you know."

"Well, I'm taking it away with me so neither of you will have to look at it," she said and looked at Charlotte. "Tina can have it if she wants."

"She's not into Iron Man."

Bridget gave a sigh and shrugged. "Great, so it's just going to collect dust at mine."

"Give it a try, at least. Iron Man is amazing," Alan spoke up. Charlotte glanced at him, eyes widening.

Bridget still didn't look impressed. "Oh, yeah? What's his superpower?"

"He doesn't really have powers; he's more of a super genius who builds this iron suit of armour to protect the world."

Bridget scoffed. "That sounds boring," she said, glimpsing at Charlotte who stood quietly at her side.

"Mmm," she said and wandered off without saying a word.

"He's more interesting than you think," Alan insisted, putting the comic in the bag and handing it to her. "This one's a good issue. He battles The Living Laser."

"Dude, that still means nothing to me," she said with a grin. "But I'll give it a read."

"Let me know what you think." Alan said, nodding at both the girls as they left and left the counter to grab a cardboard box full of comics that Uncle Gerry wanted stacking. He walked past his brother who nodded to the girls.

"They're in here a lot."

"Charlotte and Bridget? Just some girls from my year at school. They're alright. I've seen Bridget hang out with Bonnie before and she's pretty cool. Kinda one of the guys, you know?"

"Don't get too distracted. We have a duty to do. Vampires to find and kill."

Alan looked genuinely confused as he stacked a few Thor comics. "Why would I get distracted?"

Edgar sighed. "Haven't you noticed anything?" He nodded to where the girls from school had been standing.

"What are you nodding to? Notice what?"

Edgar shook his head and patted his brother on the back. "Forget I said anything." He raised an eyebrow towards the entrance where a familiar group of dirty, loud mouth Surf Nazis had started to group. Now and again they kept glancing over to the boys, smirks plastered on their face, and eyed up the comics that Uncle Gerry had put outside.

"Keep an eye on that lot," Edgar muttered and Alan glanced back, giving the Surf Nazis a sneer. They only laughed back and copied his look.

"I swear, if they steal one more comic I'm going after them," Alan grumbled.

"Chill out. Just keep an eye on them," Edgar said, going back to his job. He paid attention for a second before he raised his head again. Alan paused in his job too. The sore sight of some swaggering kid made them freeze and ignore the jobs they were supposed to be doing. Alan leaned back, eyeing up the unfamiliar boy's attire, from his hair-sprayed haystack for a hairstyle to the shirt that looked like a child had gone wild with the brightest paints they could find. The boy swaggered in, reaching for a comic straight away.

Edgar moved around the pillar and eyed the boy up and down, especially at the long, striped coat he wore, not colourful like the shirt and looked like he was playing dress up in his father's clothes. It was definitely too big on him. The coat and baggy shirt also didn't hide the fact that there seemed to be nothing on him. He was skin and bones. Colourful and skinny. He stood out so much he wouldn't be surprised if the idiot caught the attention of vampires. The kid was total vampire bait.

The fashion taste was inexcusable but so would be Edgar's decision to leave the boy and let him snatched up by one of those bloodsuckers. He might as well try to warn him. After an interrogation of course…

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><p>Bridget finally caught up to Charlotte who had been storming off through the Boardwalk. When she grabbed Charlotte's arm, her friend's blonde hair fall in front of her face like a pair of curtains. A pose she hadn't done for a couple of weeks now and she glared at Bridget through the pale strands.<p>

"You're clearly pissed at me. What the hell is up?" Bridget asked.

"Did you have to butt in like that?" she snapped as they started walking again.

"You were ready to stand there and talk all night! It wasn't like it was going well," Bridget argued.

"It might have done if you had given me the chance," Charlotte mumbled, folding her arms as they dodged through the crowds. "You totally took over there."

"Took over what?"

"You and him. Talking away."

"He started speaking to me and I answered. It was a conversation, Charlotte. _People do it all the time._"

"Alan hardly ever does and yet he would have happily talked to you all night!"

Bridget rolled her eyes. "You're twisting things. We talked for, like, a second."

Charlotte huffed. Bridget wasn't getting it. Everything was going fine until she interrupted and started talking to Alan, leaving Charlotte to skulk off to the side with the comics she had been refusing to take as she tried to get a mere sentence out of that stoic boy. How could she feel like she was pulling teeth out of Alan when Bridget only had to walk up and he was suddenly animated and talking?

"He likes you," she muttered.

"What? Oh, Charlotte, seriously? He tells me to give a comic a go and that's supposed to mean he likes me? I've never spoken to Alan before in my life and vice versa. Not even in all the classes we've ended up together."

Charlotte sighed. "But why was he talking to _you_?"

"I don't know! I don't know how that boy's mind works and I don't care."

"He barely speaks a word to me no matter how much I try, yet you come over just once and he says something."

"What are you getting all jealous for?"

"I'm not jealous!" Charlotte snapped. "I just don't get why he'd talk to _you_. I'm the one trying to be all friendly. You're calling them both dicks behind their back all the time." She breathed in through her nose and waved a hand at Bridget. "You know what? Never mind. I think I'm going to go home."

"Oh, don't be like that!" Bridget groaned.

"No, I don't feel like the concert. See you later."

Bridget watched Charlotte march off through the crowds despite calling after her. When her friend had been completely submerged by the groups of people and she couldn't even catch a glimpse of that white blonde hair, Bridget growled and started to shove her way through the Boardwalk.

Fine. If Charlotte wanted to get all upset, paranoid, obsessed, _whatever, _over some guy to the point where she flipped if her crush so much as glanced at Bridget, she was welcome to a night of crying into her pillow. She was welcome to writing tons of depressed poems or songs or whatever idiotic teen girls did when their crushes broke their hearts.

Her sister was at the steps leading down to the beach and Bridget marched over to her, immediately putting her head on Bernice's shoulder and emitting a long whine.

"Uh-oh, what's happened?" her sister asked.

"I am this close to slapping some sense into Charlotte," Bridget mumbled and straightened up. "I'm sick of this stupid obsession she has with Alan Frog. She dragged me to the comic store. _Again._"

"Again?" Bernice groaned. "Oh, you poor thing. I get what you mean about obsession."

"Right? Ever since her stupid sister came back and started helping Charlotte build up more confidence. Except confidence seems like it's turned into stalking. And she keeps dragging me with her. I bet those Frog brothers think I'm just as creepy."

"Have you tried talking to her?"

"Of course!"

"No, I mean actually talking to her? Not shouting or insulting."

"_Yes_," Bridget snapped through gritted teeth. "It's no use. She's stormed off back home now because she was upset that Alan was talking to me more than her. It's not like the guy could to be honest. She was chattering away to him. Well, more like blabbering."

Bernice shrugged. "Leave her. She just needs to calm down. So do you from how moody you look right now."

"I look moody?"

"You have a Frog scowl going on." She laughed and imitated her sister's clenched jaw and frowning expression.

Bridget giggled. "Not a great look." Her features softened and turned her attention on to the saxophone player on stage. It was the closest the sisters were going to get because the beach was absolutely packed, mainly filled with teenagers head banging, sitting on top of their friends' shoulders, or jumping up and down. Bridget and Bernice were soon joining in, starting with tapping their feet to the rhythm until their hips were swaying, their hair was thrashing and they were both whooping and clapping. Bridget had to smile. Normally she wasn't the type to get up and dance but the music was amazing and she never passed an opportunity to jump around and go crazy with head banging. It was an acceptable type of dancing.

"Very nice!" a boy cheered. A howl followed.

"Eurgh." Bridget sneered and tamed her dancing down.

"Aw, come on, baby, don't stop!"

"Fuck off," Bridget snapped, turning to glare at the pervert. "Oh."

She really wished she hadn't sworn and put on an attitude now because she was looking up at a grinning blonde biker. She recognised his wild hair and toothy grin, this time with a cigarette hanging limply from his mouth. The others were right behind him. There was the quiet one with the bleach blonde mullet who always stood in silence, sort of distancing himself away from the wolf whistling and flirtatious behaviour of the other three. The only dark haired one was silent too, taking to smiling only as he walked up to join the Twisted Sister wannabe. Then there was Marko was had also joined them, grinning and looking the most innocent but Bridget knew that was a false impression. So did Bernice who had her eyes narrowed and judging, especially towards Marko.

"Remember us?" the wild blonde grinned. "We remember you. Bonnie's friends!"

"Well done. You have a memory," Bridget said, deadpan.

"No need to get all bitchy, baby."

"We have names," Bernice snapped.

"Care to tell us?" the blonde grinned, wiggling his eyebrows at her.

"Not particularly," Bridget said.

"Not really interested," Bernice added and the sisters turned their backs on the boys, exchanging repulsed glances with each other. Their disgust only increased when Paul swung his arms over both their shoulders and Marko and Dwayne walked around to stand in front of them. Bridget had to gag at the stench of weed and cigarette smoke coming from all of them. Also at the severe alcohol breath Paul had going on.

"Seriously, do you guys mind?" Bernice asked. "You're ruining our view."

"We prefer this one," the dark haired one said, smiling. It would have been a charming smile if the girls didn't know this gang already and knew that they were all a bunch of sleazebag bikers.

"Where's Bonnie?" Marko asked.

"Stay away from my friend," Bernice demanded. "She doesn't want to see you anymore."

"Did she tell you that?"

"She made it pretty clear she thinks you and your little gang are a bunch of dicks," Bridget replied with a smirk. "Why don't you fuck off?"

"You're mouthy," Marko stated and stepped closer, lowering his voice. "I'd watch that."

She narrowed her eyes, shoving Paul's arm of her and stepping forward to Marko. He blinked at the quick and confident movement she made, quickly smirking as Bonnie's friend stood straight with her arms folded and an arrogant eyebrow raised up. She stared him straight in the eye.

"Is that a warning?" She made her voice just as low as his. "Tell me, if I kept being a bitch what would you do about it? Hurt me? Bonnie said you were violent and whatever you did to her scared the shit out of her. She barely comes out of her house because of you."

"Let me guess. I don't scare you?"

"No," she said. "You don't and you won't. Even if you do something and I'd like to see you try because you can damn well bet I'll do something about it. You really want to try it on with me?"

"Bridget, I think you need to shut up now," Bernice hissed, pulling her sister away. "You trying to start something?"

"I'm just letting him know I don't let people get away with shit. And I don't take it either."

"Enough with the tough girl act," Bernice whispered. "You're going to get yourself into trouble."

"I can handle it."

The boys were snickering at Bridget now. Paul's arm was back on her shoulder and she felt her fist clench up.

"I like this one." He grinned at her. Then glanced at Bernice. "I _really _like you."

"Feeling's not mutual," Bernice said with a sneer. She rolled her eyes and grabbed Bridget's hand. "Excuse us, but we need to go now."

She led the way past the smirking boys. Bridget took the opportunity to slam into Marko's shoulder as she was dragged past by her sister.

"You better stay away from Bonnie," she warned.

He laughed. "Can't promise that."

Bernice shook as they disappeared into the crowd. Her legs felt like jelly as she gripped her sister's hand tightly.

"Oh my god," she breathed, hand to her chest. "I feel sick."

"Dicks," Bridget muttered and swore in protest when Bernice suddenly slapped her on the shoulder. "_What_?"

"One of these days you're going to really piss off the wrong person! What if he had a go at you?"

"Like I said, I would have handled it."

"Brid, they're not some jerk or bitch at school that you slap in the face once and they leave you alone. They seem truly _dangerous._ I get a bad vibe off them and you should have just kept your mouth shut. What if they come after us now?"

"They're just dicks," Bridget said.

"Bonnie said Marko was violent. I don't know what he did exactly but she is really scared of him. Doesn't that tell you something?"

"Tells me the guy needs a good kick in the nuts."

"Oh, it's pointless! You're not listening," Bernice said. She ran a hand through her blonde hair and shook her head. "I really feel sick after that. I think we need to go home."

"No, I want to stay out."

Bernice sighed. "Brid, _we're going home._" She started to pull her sister away, feeling like a mother dragging a naughty child back home. If anything, a child would probably be easier. She could pick it up and carry it off. But Bridget pulled back, fighting against her sister and she spent the next ten minutes playing tug of rope with her as she, annoyingly slowly, made her way to the car park.

"You're going to let a bunch of idiots ruin your night?" Bridget asked.

"When they creep me out like that I'd rather be at home," Bernice replied and opened her car door. "Look, if you want to stay out then fine. But I'm off home and you can find your own way back. _Alone._"

She watched as Bridget took in her words with her mouth twisting into a moody frown and Bernice could picture how her sister's mind was working right now. She was bummed Bernice wanted to go home when they'd been having fun. First Charlotte had been stroppy and then a bunch of pervy bikers had pestered them. It was an unfortunate night for idiots but the concert had looked amazing and should be enjoyed when it was the summer holidays. Unfortunately, Bernice had also become her sister's personal chauffeur when it came to getting to the Boardwalk and back. It was a long trek home without a ride and while Bridget insisted on this tough girl persona she'd developed over the years, Bernice knew this was also the girl who still had to have a little bit of light in her room at night and refused to have a bed with storage space underneath because Michael Myers and Freddy Kruger could hide there.

"One of these days I'll be legal to drive," she muttered, slipping into the passenger seat.

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><p><strong>Thank you for reading and feel free to leave a review. :) I'll be updating next Saturday.<strong>


	5. Chapter 5

**Thank you to everyone who took the time to read or review.**

**To guest reviewer: Thank you voicing your interest in the plot and offering ideas but I'm afraid I've already finished the story and I'm going with another route, not just for Bonnie but for the characters you came across in the last chapter. I really can't say anymore because that would be explaining what's to come and spoiling everything. Feel free to stay tuned and find out what happens, if you'd like. **

**To the other guest reviewer: Again, I'm grateful to see how interested you are in the story but as I explained in the first chapter, I have no choice but to limit my updates to once a week. I have started university again and I am taking a very intense course that requires a lot of my focus and attention. I'm afraid my degree is going to take first priority. I know you'd like more chapters in a week but it wouldn't be fair if I committed myself to mulitple updates, knowing that I won't be able to keep that promise with the amount of assignments and planning I have to do. I hope you'll be able to have the patience and wait. I will always update on a Saturday but not during the week when I'm making sure I stay on track of my uni work. I also hope this response hasn't come off as harsh, that is not my intention. I'm just trying to explain how busy I am and ensure that readers are aware and understand what I give priority to. **

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><p>Bonnie's room was humid. Stuffy and warm, it felt like it had turned into a sauna. But if she had the window open, letting in the cool, night air it would be an invitation. She sat cross legged on her bed, flushed and fanning herself with paper as she tried to concentrate and read a comic. At the same time she kept up her determination to keep that window closed.<p>

When her mother walked in, her cheerful expression disappeared and she let out a long huff.

"Oh my god, this room!" She glanced down at Bonnie who smiled sheepishly from her bed, red faced and hair sticking to her forehead from sweat. "You need a window open."

"No, I don't!" Bonnie said, too quickly and with too much worry in her tone. She let the comic fall from her hands and onto the floor as she leapt up and stood in front of her window. "Mom, it's freezing!"

Mrs Casey stared at her daughter as if she had grown three new heads. "Bonnie, you look like you've been living in a sauna. It's a very hot night. You need some air in here."

She tried to step around Bonnie but she danced in front of her mother. She started rubbing at her arms and chattered her teeth together.

"Brrr!"

"Bonnie, what on earth is the matter?"

"I don't want the window opened," Bonnie said, folding her arms stubbornly. She immediately unfolded them when sweat started to gather on her arms purely from touching each other.

"Why?"

"Um…."

It was so hard to explain things recently. Why she suddenly tried to put garlic into every meal. Why she had tiny bottles of what looked like plain water all around her bedroom. Why she hid away in her room most of the time now. It would be so easy if she could tell her mother the truth. But of course she wouldn't believe Bonnie and if Marko found out she had told her parents they would be dead. Ignorance was the only thing protecting them right now.

"You're always nagging me to shut it more," Bonnie finally said.

"Oh Bonnie, you're taking it a bit too far by letting the room heat up. I've only said that when it's been the middle of winter and we're trying to keep the house warm. Don't be so silly." She reached past her daughter and opened the window. A blast of fresh air breezed in, straight into Bonnie's face. It was cool against the warmth of her face, comfortable and relaxing. It felt like she could breathe again and she was glad of it. But if her window was open, things could come in against her will. What if Marko swooped in and murdered her?

"Just let some air in here for a while. It's a very warm night," Mrs Casey said and left the room. Bonnie went straight to the window as soon as the door was closed, reaching up to pull it shut but froze at the shadowy figure lurking outside her window. A scream would have come if it wasn't for the feeling of her heart leaping up into her throat.

_Oh my God, this is it._

In the week since she had last seen Marko, she had made plans. She always had her weapons handy if he dared to show up. She knew what to say and how to act. She had been preparing for the night he would decide to come see her after finding out what he really was. But now here he was, standing against the wall of her house with his trademark smirk as if things had never changed. After murdering two people right in front of her he had the nerve to strut up to her house, grinning like a cheeky teenager and waiting for Bonnie to sneak out on a date with him like she used to. As if everything was still normal.

She was frozen in place and her voice shook.

"Are you here to kill me?" she asked.

"I'd only worry about that if David was the one appearing at your window," he said, moving towards her. She backed up, reaching for a cross and held it up just as he was about to lean in. He jerked back, putting up his hands up but his eyes were fixed on that cross.

"So these work," she whispered.

"You don't need to use that," he told her. "I'm not here to kill you."

"So you're here to try and persuade me then? The answer is still no." When he didn't leave, she took a daring step forward. "_Why me? _Why ruin my life? The more I say no, the more I know I'm one step closer to being your next meal. Do you know what that feels like?"

"Then say yes if you're already getting fed up of being on the hit list. Can I come in?" he asked.

"No."

He sighed and gracefully climbed in through her window.

"If you can come in, then why ask for an invitation?"

He shrugged, starting to walk around her bedroom. She watched him warily as she continued to hold up her cross, staying near her bed while he poked at the clutter on her desk. She glanced at the full length mirror next to him and it looked like a clip of a ghost film. The reflections of her books, jewellery, and other junk she had dumped there looked like they were moving by an unseen force. He was completely invisible in her mirror.

"You still look so normal," she whispered.

He glanced up at her. "Do I look like a vampire now?"

She sighed and the cross that held her hand trembled. "You never looked like a vampire. But you made the mistake of showing me what you really looked like. I still have nightmares, you know."

"Did what I had to do."

"Are you going to be the one to kill me?"

The corner of his mouth twitched but not to grin or smirk at her. He looked serious, way too serious, and for too long as well.

"_Could _you kill me?"

"I got to know you," he said and went back to being quiet again.

Bonnie pressed on. "But if you were asked to?"

He frowned, looking even younger for a split second. Now and again he kept opening his mouth as if ready to answer but then closed it again, sticking to his silence. Bonnie also remained silent even though the lack of communication with him was starting to make her feel incredibly awkward and she wasn't sure if she was being stupid letting him walk around and asking him questions. When he looked this confused and unsure of himself, a completely rare moment, maybe she should take the opportunity to try and harm him? Maybe kill him?

_Ever killed a vampire before? _she reminded herself and stayed put. No, of course she had never killed a vampire before. And she would probably be an idiot if she tried because she didn't really know how and Marko would no doubt be able to fight her off easily. She'd be like swatting away an annoying, buzzing fly to him. And even if she did get rid of him there were three more vampires who would be out for revenge.

Right now, Marko wasn't acting like he had the intention to rip her throat out. Since she was still alive and he hadn't come to kill her, it was working to her advantage. Keeping her alive for a bit longer. It was right then that an idea clicked in her head. Would it be possible to keep that going? Keep him interested? In fact… would it be possible make him believe_ she_ could still be interested?

Bonnie shook her head. "I don't get you. I'm human. I'm your food source. How could you want me turned instead of killed?"

"Sometimes there are interesting humans. Too interesting to just be a night's meal," he said, shrugging again. He was looking at her desk again, flicking through her calendar when she raced over to grab it from him.

"Hospital appointments?"

She ignored his question and snatched it from his hands. "Stop looking through my things! Respect my privacy! Jeez!"

She threw it on her bed, whipping back round to glare up at him and that smirk finally made its return.

"I haven't completely scared you off if you can still shout at me."

Bonnie took a couple of steps backwards and held her cross up again. He sighed and that previously confused teen was a thing of the past. He was standing straighter now and once again constantly amused by everything Bonnie did.

"I bet you still think I'm ridiculously good-looking."

"But it's a mask. You don't really look like that."

"You didn't say no."

Now it was her turn to stay silent, instead pursing her lips.

"Look, David is getting impatient. I don't think he's going to allow me any more time to convince you."

"Is it always David who makes these kills? Get rids of loose ends?"

"David's just looking out for us. That's all it is."

Bonnie scoffed. "That's all?" she repeated. "I'm a freaking loose end. That makes me feel_ great_!" she added, her tone becoming mocking.

"You know what to do, then," he said. When she scowled back at him, he sighed. "I'm just telling you like it is. If I can't persuade you to turn then he'll be on a hunt. You'll be dead in no time. So what do you want to do? Do you want to live or do you want to die?"

"How do you know I couldn't fight back?"

He laughed. Her eyes widened. Oh no, he wasn't! Was he actually laughing at her? She wasn't trying to be funny.

"It's nothing personal," he said, still chuckling away. "Come on, Bonnie, we're vampires. No human has ever been a match against us."

_Eurgh, _she thought. He was right. The only thing Bonnie knew best was performing and she couldn't exactly defeat a vampire by doing a jive or belting out the songs to _Annie_. Fighting was the only way; fighting with, by the sounds of it, strength and skills that no human could possess. Her mind flashed back to that night when Marko had grabbed that Surf Nazi by the throat, lifting him clean off the ground with such ease. She remembered how easily Marko had snapped that taxi driver's neck; tore into Debbie's throat while Bonnie couldn't even push him away from that poor, screaming girl.

Sickness rose in her stomach. It was a struggle to think of any other solution. This one was so risky. If there wasn't any way of reversing it then that would be it. One of them and she wouldn't have the humanity to care that she couldn't go back to being human. But it sounded like she didn't have much time left. She had been lucky to have a week without being hunted down.

"Would David accept that I was turning to save my own skin?" she asked.

A smirk crept up on Marko's face. "You'd be a half-vampire. I doubt you'd want to risk exposing yourself in the process. And once that hunger starts you won't be able to stop yourself from completing the change."

Bonnie bit her lip as she placed down the cross, her hand trembling as she let it fall onto her desk chair. Marko watched her silently, patiently as well, and waited for her to respond.

"I don't want to die…" she started and when she couldn't bring herself to say the words she settled for nodding at him. His grin widened.

"But not tonight," she said. "Can I at least have time to let it sink in?"

The corner of his mouth twitched again. "If it's what you've decided you need to join us quickly. David will think you're messing us around."

"I just meant can it be tomorrow instead of tonight? Just give me one day at least. You know, mentally prepare," Bonnie said.

"Fine. Meet us at the Boardwalk tomorrow night as soon as it gets dark."

She nodded, taking a deep breath in. He started heading back to the window, pausing to touch her on the shoulder.

"You'll love it," he said and leaned down for a kiss as if it was still completely natural for him to do so. He pulled away abruptly when Bonnie leaned her head back, away from him, and stared down at her, stunned.

"I can't do that right now. You still killed two people in front of me," she told him.

"I get it. You're still human, I guess," he said. He was smiling again as he reached the window and started to climb out, glancing back at her. "Maybe when you've changed." And his eyebrow quirked up suggestively. Bonnie could only manage a weak smile on her face, not bothering to force it to reach her eyes or respond with a flirty remark. Her stomach already felt sensitive. If she even tried to be all flirtatious she would probably throw up the entire contents of it onto the carpet right in front of him. The thought of touching him and kissing him like she used to after he had brutally murdered those innocent people made her want to gag. He could be all coy and too sure of himself, too sure of _them _as a couple even, all he wanted. That night he had shown his true nature and had ended anything between them.

He disappeared from her window and she peered out. Already he was at his motorcycle across the street. The silent road was suddenly disturbed by the roar of his engine, echoing all around and he rode off. She leaned against the frame of her window, her heart racing at her decision.

So the first step was becoming a half vampire. Like Star and Laddie. That meant she would have some humanity in her, hopefully enough to keep her from crossing that dangerous path of killing and giving up all sense of morality. And it would give her the strength to finish off those vampires herself. Again, _hopefully._

Tomorrow, she would start researching.

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><p><strong>Thank you for reading and if you would like to leave a review, please feel free to do so. I'll be updating next Saturday.<strong>


	6. Chapter 6

**Thank you to CastleRockGirl for reviewing and everyone who took the time to read the last chapter. :)**

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><p>Bridget walked straight to the counter where Alan flicked through the channels on the store's television. She leaned against it, cleared her throat, and smiled when he turned around. As he did, there was a bored look on his face, expecting another customer with a handful of comics that he really couldn't be bothered dealing with, but as soon as he saw it was someone he knew, he straightened up and flashed a polite smile.<p>

"Oh, hi," he greeted.

"Hey. So, I read the comic aaaaand you're right. Iron Man is actually pretty cool," she said.

"Told you," he said, walking over to stand opposite her. His eyes roamed the rest of the store. "Where's your friend?"

"You noticed her, huh?" Bridget grinned but Alan stared back blankly.

"Well, yeah, she's bought a lot of comics. Is she supposed to be invisible?"

With a sigh, she shook her head and waved a hand. She could spell out Charlotte's huge crush on him and he probably wouldn't get it even then. Her friend was spending all her time worrying that she was being too forward and obvious but Bridget could see that Charlotte's problem wasn't in how she was approaching Alan. He was simply clueless, unaware that relationships happened.

"Forget what I said, dude" she said and gestured to herself. "It's just moi."

"By yourself?" He glanced outside the shop. "It's night time."

She shrugged. "It's the summer holidays. I'm taking advantage of all the free time I have."

"Still, you got to be careful around here. Don't you know what's out there?"

"Oh, trust me, I've come across the dick-shits and sleazebags. But I can handle myself," she replied with a smug smile and drummed her palms on the counter expectantly. "So, what's next on the comic book list? I want to give some more a try."

Alan went straight for the stack of Spider-Man comics and held one up. "My personal favourite."

"Does he grow eight legs?" She shuddered at the name. "I don't like spiders."

Alan chuckled, an unfamiliar noise she had never heard until now. It was amazing how much one little chuckle made his whole face brighten up.

"No," he explained. "See, he's this guy called Peter Parker who gets bitten by a radioactive spider and develops spider-like qualities. He climbs walls, has a spider sense, things like that. No extra legs or eyes." He grabbed another from the pile and handed them both to her. "These two go together. Try them."

"Okay, you're my comic book tutor. I'll take your word for it." She dug into her pocket for the money. "Do your parents own this place?" She nodded to the two sleeping figures over at the television, assuming that they were actually his parents. Alan glanced back, his face appearing to harden and for a second Bridget thought she had offended him by suggesting these weird, hippy adults were his parents.

"Oh, sorry, I thought they were your folks," she quickly said.

"No. They are," he mumbled. "This is my Uncle Gerry's place. " He was abruptly silent after that, taking the money from her and avoiding all eye contact as he worked the till and she took the comics.

"Handy having a business in the family. I'm trying to find a job but there are only bar ones at the moment which I'm obviously underage for," she said and rolled her eyes.

"We have a vacancy."

She wrinkled her nose up. "I can't see myself working in a comic store."

"I seem to be converting you," he said and flashed a rare smile. "Who knows?"

"Is the vacancy Bonnie's old job? She might want that back."

Alan gave a light shrug. "We're not on speaking terms."

"She hasn't been on speaking terms with any of us lately. I've only just managed to persuade her to have a girls' day out with me and Bernie." She stuffed the comics in her bag and leaned onto the counter again, her expression serious and stern. "Look, I don't know what really went on but when I saw yesterday she didn't look great. Whatever Marko did really shook her and she's not handling it well. Be a bit more understanding, okay? She's one of my best girls."

"We tried to warn her about Marko but she didn't want to know."

"She chose a shitty guy and made a mistake. So what? I don't like Marko and that pervert gang of his but I'm not going to lay into her. She needs her friends, not a parental lecture."

"You didn't like him either, huh?"

"No. He was pestering me and Bernie last night. Him and two others in that gang. Have you seen those guys?"

"A couple of times but briefly. I know who you're talking about though." He started to open his mouth again, as if he was going to say something else when she started heading towards the entrance. She did stop, waiting to see what he was about to tell her but he kept pausing, his eyebrows knitting together as if he was unsure of what he wanted to say.

Finally, he looked her straight in the eye. "Something's not right about them. Be careful if they come up to you again."

She grinned. "Like I said, I can handle myself. See you around, Alan."

Her hand clutched her bag as she wandered through the Boardwalk idly, searching for the slightest bit of interesting entertainment. It was sort of dead for a summer night in Santa Carla. Shops were still open and there were only a few random entertainers scattered about; a couple of jugglers and a street magician but no music coming from anywhere. She preferred it when bands took advantage of the beach and set up a small concert. Those were the best nights. When music echoed around and the beach was alight with fires as hoards of teenagers flocked towards the band to go completely wild. It was the only time she was comfortable and actually liked being around large crowds of people.

Sighing, she leaned against the railings and looked out onto the beach. Some groups had set up their own little concerts, bringing their large stereos and blasting out loud music. The sand was already being filled with crunched up cans of beer.

Just near the stairs she also saw that gang and a disgusted sneer crept onto her face. They were doing their usual lurking, sticking close by and watching everyone around them with an almost predatory, hungry look on their faces. Now and again a group of girls or a single female would walk past them and they would whistle and heckle.

There was another girl on the back of the tall one's bike, the one always dressed head to toe in black and never seemed to utter a word. She looked positively miserable, staring out at the sea and Bridget wondered if Bonnie could have ended up like that. Sitting behind Marko, an accessory rather than a girlfriend and looking like she wished she had never hooked up with him.

_Dicks, _she thought. _Wasted, sleazy bunch of dicks._

She was about to pull herself away from the railings, all set to disappear into the crowd before any of them spotted her, when she noticed Marko hopping off his bike to happily greet someone. She saw a flash of familiar copper hair and bright clothes and immediately she was ready to scream.

_What. The. Fuck?_

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><p>Marko's arms were outstretched but Bonnie didn't return the gesture, folding her own arms to hint at him that she wasn't about to accept that welcome hug. He dropped his arms with a chuckle, understanding what her tense posture meant but still reached to nudge her arm lightly. She also noticed he had glanced back at David and smirked triumphantly.<p>

"Okay, I'm here," she said, smiling weakly at the others who were all watching her with their own grins. Even… Darryl? No, David. Even David was smirking. Star was peering from behind him, wide eyes and her mouth slightly parted in a 'o' shape.

"_What are you doing?_" she mouthed at her but Bonnie ignored it, shrugging and taking Marko's hand when he offered it. She allowed him to help her climb onto his bike after he did but she was unable to help cringing when she wrapped her arms around his waist, ready to keep a good grip on him. When all she could do was remember how he murdered those two people, making physical contact with him threatened to bring up the contents of her stomach. Sighing, she willed herself to stay put and there was a sharp slap on her back. A cackling laugh followed.

"Nice one, girl," Paul said.

"Can we just get it over with?" she asked and the boys were laughing.

"Not getting cold feet?" Dwayne asked, leaning towards her.

"It's not an easy decision," she said and he nodded, straightening up on his bike.

"It's easier once you've drank," he said and then briefly glimpsed over his shoulder. "We're going home, little man."

The little half vampire boy was sitting behind him, watching Bonnie curiously. She stared back for a brief second before averting her eyes. Did this little boy have any idea what was really happening to him or what his situation was? He was always going with the flow, following these strange teenagers; not one of them related to him at all. Had he even known he could have been murdered by them?

The boys started their bikes; thunderous roars echoing around them. Bonnie chewed on her bottom lip.

"Bonnie!"

Her eyes flickered to Bridget who was marching over. Her face twisted into a scowl as she glared at the gang and then to Bonnie who wanted to crawl into a black hole.

"_The fuck?_" Bridget gestured at Marko. "He's a creep!"

"It's… complicated?" Bonnie ducked her head, not wanting to see that stern, disapproving glare of her friend. After everything she had told Bridget about Marko she had no doubt this would look totally unbelievable. Absolutely ridiculous. And she wanted to be able to tell Bridget the truth. It was begging to be spilled but that risked putting Bridget in danger of being on the vampire hit list.

"I think you've misjudged us, girl," Paul said.

"No, I don't think I have," Bridget snapped back, keeping her glare on Marko who calmly stared back with a quirked eyebrow and the left corner of his lips tugging up in a smug sneer.

"Maybe Bonnie wants to work things out," he suggested but she scoffed.

"She hates your guts!"

"Then why she is on my bike?"

He rode off. The rest of them hollering as they sped away, almost knocking Bridget backwards as they drove straight past her and she was left standing with her mouth hanging open.

Bonnie couldn't even bring herself to see the expression on her friend's face. She swore out loud and for a split second she wanted to scream at Marko to stop and let her off so she could run off, joining Bridget instead. She clenched her jaw, hands gripping at Marko's jacket as he sped through the beach at a dangerous pace. She could hear the shouts of protest from people as they were given a face full of sand but their angry cries and swearing only amused Marko as he laughed and howled. She could hear the equally amused guffawing from Paul and Dwayne and caught a glimpse of David's calm enjoyment. He kept straight ahead, gradually catching up to Marko to overtake him with the faintest of smiles etched onto his face. While Star bit her lip, Bonnie caught of her lips wanting to tug up into a smile as well.

She wasn't quite sure when they had left the beach, only suddenly noticing that they were surrounded by the dark path and trees of the Redwoods. Thin tendrils of fog had started to creep its way around them, thickening quickly and she took in a sharp breath, her vision full of grey fog and the rest of the boys looking like dark silhouettes. How the hell could they see? If it was this foggy then the sea wasn't too far away from them.

A squeak came from her as Marko halted abruptly and she was jolted forwards and then back, breathing heavily and looking around. But all she could see was the thick sheet of fog and the vampires around her. Star hopped off, moving closer to Bonnie when she jumped down from the bike. A hand grabbed Bonnie's arm and she turned to the half vampire girl.

"Why are you doing this?" Star asked, keeping her voice low but there didn't seem to be any point. David straightened up, smiling at her.

"Let the girl make her own decisions, Star," he told her. Gracefully leaping off his bike he nodded behind him with his head. "Let's go."

Paul was already racing his way up some wooden stairs that creaked with every step. He paused at the top, under a sign that had the words 'warning' and 'stay out' written in bold red letters before giving another short whoop and he disappeared downwards. Marko stayed behind Bonnie as she followed David and Paul. Star had sulked off to the back somewhere while the little boy, Laddie, was giggling away every time Dwayne jovially lifted him up with a single hand to miss a step. If this was an official initiation, no-one was acting sinister about it. Apart from David and Star, the boys were cheering merrily down the steps, another horrible wooden staircase that Bonnie could feel shaking from the weight. She breathed a sigh of relief when her feet touched the ground but her heart sunk again when she saw the entrance to a cave, huge rocks making her steps careful and unbalanced. The entrance had been fenced off at some point but a few pieces of wood had disappeared to make a gap big enough for them all to fit in. David and Paul had swooped in, disappearing into the darkness and Bonnie hesitantly walked up, looking back at Marko.

He nodded. "Go on."

Her stomach still made moves similar to the Giant Dipper. Up and down. Around and around. Twisting and turning. But she climbed in, blinded by complete darkness. Her feet carefully stepped forward and she tapped it cautiously with her toes, feeling a slight slant downwards. A hand gripped her arm.

"I got you," Marko said.

She was thankful when Paul lit a few bins, not taking the darkness away completely but enough for her to wriggle her arm out of Marko's grip and continue down herself, jumping off the edge. Finally she stopped to take in the cave around her. Her eyes went straight to the chandelier that was in the middle, looking like it had crashed right in the middle of a fountain. There were still candles attached to it, most melted, small, and draped with cobwebs. Across the walls there were posters of rock stars, film posters, anything and everything. Towering above were archways with fancy decorations, crooked and leaning into each other.

"Did this used to be a building?" she asked, gazing around.

"You must know about this hotel," David said. "It's local history. Famous."

She shook her head. "It's not a hobby of mine."

"You're missing out. Local history is quite fascinating." He waved a hand around him. "It collapsed on April 18th 1906. The day of the San Francisco earthquake. Six hundred are estimated to have died in here when the quake hit and brought the entire building into the ground."

"And now you live here," Bonnie said.

David grinned. "And now we live here. For now."

He collapsed into a wheelchair, letting one leg hang off the right arm and there was silence as he nodded over to Marko who left her side to go to the corner of the cave. Star had moved over to a bed that was slightly hidden by dirty netting hanging down in front of it. She was shaking her head at Bonnie, only to stop when David looked her way. They had a brief staring match before Star was the first one to crack and look away. He was back focusing on Bonnie with a hint of a smirk on his face.

"I think you've made the right choice here," he said to her.

"I don't think I really had much of a choice to begin with," Bonnie replied curtly. "I'm pissed off."

Paul waved a hand as he sat on the edge of the water fountain, long legs stretched out in front of him and he was lighting up a cigarette. "Eh. You get over it after a while."

"David didn't exactly let us know what he was up to when he changed us. At least you know what to expect," Marko said, walking back to her. He held a bottle in his hands, an old wine bottle that had been decorated in gold with red jewels. She had to suppress a giggle. That bottle looked like it had been personally decorated. So which of these tough looking boys had taken the time to get all creative?

Her amusement was short lived when she realised there was red liquid sloshing around inside it. Marko held it out to her and a silence had dropped around the cave. All eyes were on her, including Star, and Laddie had moved away from Paul and Dwayne over to the bushy haired hippy. Both of them stood very close together and looked nervous as Bonnie took the bottle from Marko's hands and titled it in her grasp.

"It's blood," she stated.

"All you have to do is drink," David explained. He was leaning forward in his chair, his ice blue eyes insistent. There was no time to waste, she realised. She either had to go ahead and get it over with or there would be doubt. There was no need to pretend she wasn't angry at being put into this situation but she had to appear as if she understood it was best to give in and avoid death.

"Whose blood is it?" Bonnie asked, taking a wary sniff of it. It smelt rich, tempting her on the spot to take a cheeky sip of it.

"It doesn't matter. It makes you one of us," David answered. She noticed his tone was clipped. "That all you need to know."

"Come on, girl," Paul encouraged.

"It's just a drink," Dwayne added.

"Tick tock, Bonnie," David murmured.

She brought the bottle to her lips, just hovering and she glanced at Marko. He was watching her out of the corner of his eye, serious and silent while the others muttered words of encouragement; daring her, urging her.

She squeezed her eyes shut and drank.

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><p><strong>Thank you for reading and please feel free to leave a review. :) I've had a bit of extra time this weekend so I'll give the next chapter an edit through to post up for tomorrow. But for now, I've got a stack of reading material to get done for uni and notes to make for them. Fun times (!) :( <strong>


	7. Chapter 7

**Thanks to everyone who read and/or reviewed. Also a big thank you to new followers and favourites. :)**

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><p>Bonnie's senses immediately exploded. Intensified. As if they hadn't been working properly until now but the howls of the boys and David's clapping pierced right through her ears. She cringed, opening her eyes and the dimness of the cave had disappeared. Marko still stood near her, now with a Cheshire cat smile on his face. Her head buzzed like she had drunk her weight in alcohol. The chill of the cave that had been sending goosebumps down her arms had disappeared. Or at least the cold was still there but it didn't cause a reaction in her body.<p>

She settled the bottle down onto a table near her and wiped at her mouth.

"I feel dizzy," she said and gestured to the exit. "I need some air."

David waved a hand and nodded. She walked back out, part of her appreciating the sharpness of her eyesight as she headed up. There were footsteps behind her and she turned to see Star following her, a determined scowl on her face and Bonnie continued, sighing as she prepared herself from the lecture the girl was probably about to give her.

Her assumptions were right. As soon as she was standing outside, Star marched in front of her.

"Why did you do that?" she asked.

"Keep your voice down," Bonnie snapped. "I had to."

"No, you didn't."

"David wasn't going to give me more time."

"So you're giving up? Letting them turn you?"

"Hey, don't you dare lecture me. You chose this as well and I saw that grin on your face when we were riding over here so don't have a go at me. You wanted to be in this gang. _I don't._"

"Then why –?"

"Look, I have a plan. Well, kind of," Bonnie interrupted, keeping her voice low. If she could still hear the mumbling of the boys down in the cave then they must be able to hear her too. She leaned in close to Star. "This was the only thing I could think of that would get David off my back for a while. If I took this step then I'm not a loose end. I'm not taking that final step."

"Oh." Star pulled away, nodded. "Okay. I get it. You're trying to find a cure?"

"We'll talk when they're not around," Bonnie said, hearing loud footsteps coming up towards the entrance. "_Act angry," _she mouthed and suddenly changed her expression, eyes narrowed and hands on her hips. Star looked blank for a moment before she finally caught on and stormed off.

"I thought you were better than this," she snapped at Bonnie, storming past Marko who mockingly smiled at her. She grumbled under her breath and headed back inside.

"How're you feeling?" Marko asked.

"Awake," Bonnie said and slapped his shoulder when he laughed. "Don't laugh, it's hard to explain. I just feel awake. Like I'm aware of everything."

"You're only half," Marko reminded her. "Your senses feel stronger now but imagine what it'll be like when you've completely turned. I was on the verge on needed glasses when David brought me in. Huge relief."

They stood facing the sea, watching the waves crash against each other. It sounded like lions roaring to Bonnie, almost deafening, and she was too busy concentrating on these strange new sounds to notice Marko's arm around her shoulders. She tensed at first but quickly reminded herself of how she was supposed to be all secret agent at the moment and forced herself to relax into him.

_Keep him interested, _she reminded herself.

"Was David the only reason you turned?" he asked.

She frowned. "What do you mean?"

"I know you didn't want to be seen as a threat but was something else wrong?"

When she shook her head, he pressed on. "I was thinking about those hospital appointments you had on your calendar."

"You shouldn't have been looking at that," she snapped, tensing up again and he noticed the change in her stance; back to folding her arms tightly across her chest.

"I was just curious."

"It's something I'm uncomfortable talking about."

"To me? Or to anybody?"

"They're only appointments. Don't mean anything. Anyway, why does it matter? I'm not really human anymore. Whatever I had is cured." She sighed and her features softened. "Sorry, it's a touchy subject."

"Was it something bad?"

She slowly nodded. "It could have made things difficult later."

"How do you feel now?"

Earlier that day she had woken up to numbness in her hands. Pins and needles had tingled up and down her left arm. Her balance had been off, one of her most familiar symptoms, and that unwanted companion of fatigue had kept her from doing much apart from lying on the sofa most of the day and trying to watch numerous films. She had no energy to get up and do something.

But all that had gone. Her fatigue had been washed away by that blood in an instant, her body urging her to run around everywhere the way her old cat, Pip, used to do when she had a mad moment. She wanted to leap in the air, spin around, dance, anything that involved being active.

And her sight was incredible. Sharp, noticing the tiniest of details such as a minute smudge of paint on the fencing. Everything was brighter than it had been. The moon glowing, a dazzling shade of white.

"It feels like it's gone," she admitted and there was a part of her that was relieved. "In a way that's a bad thing because if I feel different, better even, then that means I must have had it in the first place. I was hoping I was fine."

"Like you said, it's gone now." He was smiling mischievously again. "It's fun from now on. No aging, no dying, and your own rules."

It was almost innocent how Marko talked about being a vampire. That it really was all about having fun and not being forced to live by any human rules. It was all so glamorized and simple, Bonnie had to wonder if he really didn't get how monstrous all of this was. He didn't understand that what he was doing when he got hungry was pretty barbaric and evil. Had he always seen it this way when he was only half and changing or was his view the result of being a vampire for too long? Could they really not see how wrong they were?

"Almost," Bonnie pointed out. "But at the moment I still have parents who expect me to be at home. Think I'll be okay to do that?"

"I'll give you a ride," he said, taking the hint and start leading the way up the stairs. "You won't be able to stay at home for long though. That hunger kicks in quick and you don't want to use your parents as your first kill. Trust me, you wouldn't be able to disappear quietly."

It was disgusting how he smiled as he said that.

"Had some experience there?" Bonnie asked.

"Not me."

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><p>Bonnie had asked Marko to pull up at the top of her street, not wanting the sound of his motorbike to capture the attention of Edgar and Alan. They wandered down the quiet street slowly. Now and again Bonnie could make out the distant sound of somebody clattering in their kitchen or the muffled sound of late night television on. Leaves rustled loudly from the wind.<p>

"Who did you kill first?" Bonnie asked. It was a conversation she had a feeling she would regret having, part of her not really wanting to know how much of a monster Marko was. Even as a half vampire she might not be able to stomach all the horrible things he had done in his life. But maybe it would help her. Help that human part remember what being a vampire was really all about and keep her from giving in to the hunger that was to come. His life could be a deterrent.

"He was my best friend. A group of us ran away together after dropping out of high school but he was the only one I confided in when David initiated me. He tried to help me find a cure at first but after I'd been half for a while and starving, I couldn't help it. I needed to feed and he was there."

"Did you care?"

"No."

"He was your best friend."

"I was hungry. My emotions were suddenly shut off so I just killed him and turned completely. Once you kill you've opened a door and you keep doing it every time you need blood you're further away from humanity each time." He glanced at her, seeing a wide eye expression on Bonnie's face.

"It might seem shocking to you now but that disappears. It's inevitable," he explained. "Each day, even when you're half you'll lose your humanity more and more. Your hardest choice was taking that drink."

"You think it'll be that easy for me?"

"When you're that hungry it's easy for anyone." He nudged her with his elbow. "I'll be there for your first kill."

She snorted. "You're a supportive boyfriend."

"Boyfriend, huh?" he grinned and she couldn't help a smile back. She had said that to him when they had first got together, having not been sure whether they were really going to start something or if it was nothing serious; a brief fling before they both lost interest. But he had suggested it and she'd almost gone leaping of his motorcycle to do a ridiculous dance of victory. She had been secretly hoping he would make it a little more serious. Nothing like declaring undying love or deciding that this would be the guy she wanted to marry. Just saying they were officially boyfriend and girlfriend had enough at the time.

"Maybe," she said. "It feels complicated."

His fingers started to brush against hers, faintly linking them. It was a relief when they got to her house and she quickly snatched her hand back, running it through her hair and standing awkwardly near her gate.

"So, I'm home," she said, opening the gate up and cringing at its loud creaking. She hoped it was her good hearing that was making it sound noisy otherwise she was in danger of catching the attention of her parents or Edgar and Alan. She stared at both houses, waiting for a light to switch on; a sign that someone had been woken up. But they both continued to be in darkness, no sound from either of them. It must have been her hearing being sensitive.

She was turning around, back to face Marko and was surprised at how close his face was. She was standing there almost paralysed as he took the advantage to kiss her and she automatically moved her lips against his. For a brief second it was all so normal and the way it used to be, even if that time had been quite short before she found out everything. They were just two teenagers going out and everything was that simple. Kissing him felt like such a human thing to do and she even lifted her hands to reach for him. But when they snaked around his neck and sense came rushing back to her, she paused.

_What the freaking fuck are you doing? _

"I better get inside," she whispered, pulling away. She managed a light laugh and gestured to her house. "I'll see you tomorrow, I guess?"

He nodded. "Usual place at the Boardwalk?"

Bonnie kept her smile and flashed him thumbs up. "Cool," she said and disappeared over to her window around the side of the house. She stole one last glimpse at Marko who was looking into the distance, frowning until he nodded to nothing in particular and walked away.

She sighed as she slipped her fingers in through the small gap in the window she left and pushed it up. It flew up in one smooth move and she involuntarily gasped: a mixture of surprise and amusement. This was usually the part she felt incredibly pathetic with, always struggling to push it up, constantly having to stop and start as she tried to get a big enough to gap to climb in through. The window was always fighting against her.

She bit her lip, now looking at the window ledge. Thinking of typical routines, she would also be falling into her room, too short to properly climb in and instead having to do a lot of jumping and shuffling with her legs kicking in the air because she always ended up balancing awkwardly, unable to swing her legs over the ledge. She had come to accept that she was forever going to fall head first into her room each time she sneaked in, without any grace.

But maybe…

She raised her hands, gripping onto the window frame. Bending her legs and putting some weight in her arms, she lifted herself up easily off the ground and swung them over. She was inside in one, cat-like move.

"Shit!" She laughed and closed the window. She definitely couldn't deny it. That had been _incredible_.

She went over to her mirror, expecting to see her reflection gone like Marko's had but it wasn't exactly what she thought. She was still there but very transparent, more like a ghost. She peered closer, noticing the slight paleness to her skin as the only visible change to her. She stretched out her own arms, observing them. The tan she had been developing since the weather started getting much warmer had faded. She wasn't as pale as the boys but she certainly wasn't as sun-kissed as she had been earlier.

Bonnie also pulled her lip up with her finger, examining her teeth but they had remained the same. No sign of pointy teeth or even an improvement. Her two front teeth still had that little gap she loathed.

She still looked like herself and a satisfied smile appeared on her face. Good. She was happy to look normal. It only helped with being determined to revert back to being fully human.

Now to start on the plan: find a way to get rid of those vampires and become human again.

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><p><strong>Thank you for reading and leave a comment, if you wish. :) Next update will be on Saturday. <strong>


	8. Chapter 8

**Thanks to everyone who read, reviewed, favourited and followed. :)**

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><p>Max's home was just as dazzling as sunlight, full of neon signs, an unnecessary amount of antique lamps and candle sticks. He always had his jukebox on that repeatedly played slow songs by crooning singers; the type old people would listen to. Max also had a gramophone that he used for all his classical music. The whole house was full of clutter, antiques and collectables that Max couldn't help hoarding. It was a wonder how he had moved from place to place with all this crap he stored. The boys might have brought home bits and bob to their little cave, decorating it with posters and graffiti but they were still things that they would be leave behind when the time came to move on.<p>

Marko was slouched on the sofa with his feet up on the table. David wandered around, taking in all of Max's pictures as if he really was fascinated by them. Paul had freely taken himself into the kitchen, rummaging through Max's fridge.

He was pulling a face as he tried to find something that actually appealed to him. "What's the point of all this veg and rabbit food Max keeps? It's not like vampires need to watch what they eat." He turned to the little cabinet next to the fridge where all of Max's expensive wine was kept and sighed. "Not even a single beer."

Max appeared out of nowhere, slamming the fridge door shut. "There's no harm in eating your greens and eating good food. You were ruining yourself as a human. I could practically smell the junk food in your blood when you first came to us."

Paul snorted, waving a hand in dismissal and picked up a bottle of wine. Max snatched it back. "I'm saving that," he snapped, putting it away and directing Paul into the living room.

"I prefer beer anyway," Paul said, collapsing in an armchair.

"Marko," Max said sternly and nodded to his feet. "You know the rules. No feet on the table."

Marko sighed and took them off.

."I hear you turned the girl," Max began, beaming down at the youngest vampire like a proud father. "Good, it's nice that you're all showing an interest in young ladies. It'll be good to have a change of gender in our little family. We need it. I do hope you get her to kill soon, Marko. I'd very much like to meet her."

His smile was sardonic. "Maybe we should get all parents together for a meal out in a fancy restaurant."

"Enough sarcasm, young man. I know you boys make fun of me for acting like a father but I like considering you all as my sons. I started this family and I was always ready to provide for each one of you when you joined. You need to show me a bit more respect. Now, where's Dwayne?"

"He's getting rid of his kill. He won't be long," David said and turned so he leaned against the wall. "Why the meeting, Max?"

"I wanted to see if the situation with Bonnie had been sorted. And… I have wonderful news."

The cheerful beam on his face only meant one thing and the boys groaned.

"Not another one," Paul groaned, letting his head fall back.

"Max, we don't have time for this. As soon as Bonnie's turned we need to get ready to leave town," Marko argued. David was standing in his spot, rolling his eyes and looking out of the window, completely bored with the situation. Dwayne was walking in as Paul and Marko had begun protesting, brow furrowed as he went to David's side.

"What did I miss?" he asked.

"Max is interested again," David said with a brief shake of his head.

"Is it that woman in the shop yesterday? Fuck's sake."

"Lucy is a very nice woman," Max said. "She'd be an excellent mother to all of you. She has two boys of her own which we could use to our advantage –."

"_Our_ advantage?" David repeated, raising an eyebrow.

"This is your plan, not ours," Dwayne added.

"We need to turn her sons," Max continued, ignoring them.

"We've already turned two girls and a little boy," David argued. "The pack is getting too big."

Marko was nodding. "The more of us there are the more killings we need to make. We might be able to get away with that here but in any other town we'd end up being hunted."

"You boys need a mother. After Lucy and her sons that will be it. With Bonnie turning as well we will have to act fast. I do agree with you. But these half vampires you have weren't my doing. I didn't turn them so if we have too many in pack that was all down to you four. Maybe you'll have to be selective on who joins our pack for definite. Get rid of a couple of those half vampires."

David sighed. "There's no need for any of this,"

Max looked at him grimly. "I'd like to have a family again, David. I've done a lot for you boys. I've found the best towns for us to make it easier to feed, I taught all of you on how to control the hunger, and kept the police off your backs when you were careless." He glanced back at David. "I rescued you from that crash, remember? I took you in when I didn't have to." His eyes found the other boys. "I took you all in. I know it's hard to remember your human lives but you were all suffering and I gave David permission to bring you into the fold."

They were all silent, a rarity for Max who felt like he was dealing with their cocky, rebellious attitudes increasingly these days. It was David who spoke up first.

"Fine. Who are we looking for?"

"Michael and Sam, I believe. Lucy said Michael was her eldest, closer to your ages. I'd start with him first. He's an eighteen year old boy in a new town. He'll certainly be desperate to fit in somewhere."

"We'll need a description."

"From the photo Lucy was showing me you're looking for a young man with curly, dark hair."

"Hey, I think we've seen him," Paul said. "Yeah, last night. Some guy was following Star around. Totally drooling after her."

Marko grinned. "He did look like fresh meat."

"Totally bummed when she hopped onto David's bike," Paul added and snickered.

"Good. We can use that if he is the boy we're after," Max said. "David, use Star."

David wanted to burst out laughing but he stuck to an amused look. "Star? She won't do anything."

"Then I'm afraid you're going to have to be a bit stern. Use something that will force her. Get her to find this boy and lure him in. If he isn't Michael, he can be her first kill. She's been a half for too long now. But if he is Michael, get him turned immediately."

There was a brief staring match between David and Max, the other boys watching them silently until David scowled and looked away.

"We'll search for him tomorrow night," he said, though his tone was clipped and irritated.


	9. Chapter 9

It was midday when Bonnie finally woke up. She muttered incoherently, making sounds and squinting around. She had forgotten to close the curtains last night after collapsing fully dressed onto her bed and the sunlight now poured into her bedroom. The bright rays stung at her eyes and she hissed, burying her face into her pillow. Blindly, she stretched out a hand to her bedside table and pulled the first drawer open for her sunglasses.

They didn't stop the sunlight from bothering her eyes but it made it bearable. She got up, running a hand through the mess that was her hair and pushed herself to sit up. That energy she had was gone. Absolutely nowhere. Her body was sluggish and slow as it tried to move around and she cursed aloud. Wasn't the vampire blood in her system supposed to make her more active? To take away the fatigue that had been washing over her now and again?

She went to go check her reflection in the mirror, ready to sort out the haystack that was supposed to be her hair and groaned when she saw how faint she looked in it. She was squinting as she grabbed a brush and brusquely sorted her hair out.

The plan had been to start researching vampires as soon as she got up, hoping to spend the whole day at the library in search for cures and ways to kill a vampire. But it was already midday and she was sauntering around like a zombie. She felt no motivation at all to do anything except go back to bed and sleep until night returned.

_That's giving in to their behaviour. Keep doing as many human things as possible, _she reminded herself and nodded sternly at her reflection. Breakfast first and then the library.

She walked out of her bedroom, heading straight to the kitchen where her mother was fixing a sandwich for lunch.

"I tried waking you earlier but you were out like the dead," Mrs Casey said and nodded at Bonnie. "You fell asleep in your clothes."

Bonnie cringed. "Sorry. I was out late."

"I'll let it slide this time. I'm just glad you were out and seeing people. Did you say anything to Marko?" She tossed sliced cucumber and tomato onto the bread and gestured at it to Bonnie. "Want one?"

Her daughter shook her head, going for the cereal. "I'm not that hungry. I'll just have this," she said, grabbing a bowl.

"Well?"

Bonnie sighed. "Well _what_?"

"There's no need to snap. Does Marko know about the MS?"

"No. I just said I'd been busy and wasn't avoiding him."

She had never dared mentioned anything about Marko to her mother, not even the lie she had been telling Bernice and Bridget about how he was a violent dick in the end. Knowing her mother, Mrs Casey would have personally marched down to the Boardwalk to confront him and would have ended up dead. It was best lying to her, making out like Marko was another person close to her who she had shut out because of MS.

Bonnie continued to lie. "He seemed to buy it. He was fine. It was nice to be out on a date."

She perched herself on a stool to eat her cereal. It tasted like cardboard despite all the chopped up fruit in it. She pulled a face as she forced herself to chew.

"That's good," Mrs Casey smiled. "It's nice seeing you back out and doing things." She came over to Bonnie, tucking a strand of hair behind her daughter's ear.

"Everything can still be normal, you know," she said and Bonnie almost spat the cereal in her mouth right back out to laugh.

Normal? Human or not, she was never going to know normal again. She was either doomed to have a condition that could debilitate her over time, ruining her chances of working on the stage or she was at risk of becoming a vampire if she didn't control herself well. Also, if she succeeded in her plan, she would forever be aware that vampires existed and still be paranoid of them turning up, even if Marko and his gang were all dead.

"Alan popped by this morning," Mrs Casey said, taking a bite out of her sandwich. "I said you were still asleep. He wanted to see how you were doing."

"We're not talking at the moment," Bonnie said and her mother shrugged.

"I think he wants that to change."

Great. What a time to start trying to come around and speak to her again. Edgar and Alan were not completely daft if they could see that vampires existed. They might accuse every single person they see of some supernatural condition but she had to be careful. They might recognise something in her and start to hunt her down. She wished she could ask for their help; see if they really did know anything about vampires that would be useful in figuring out a cure. But they hated vampires with a passion. They'd kill her. They wouldn't get it was all part of a plan.

"I might visit him later then. I want to have a shop around town today." She put her unfinished bowl of cereal away when she heard the doorbell go. There were two familiar scents, one musky and one fruity. She tensed as she opened up the door to the angry faces of Bernice and Bridget. Their matching scowls and narrowed eyes made them look more like twins even though there was a year and seven months apart between them. If it wasn't for their different hair colours people would actually have trouble telling them apart.

Bonnie put her hands up in defence. "Before you stomp in –."

"Bedroom," Bernice hissed. "Now." She quickly lost her furious expression when the sisters marched in and Bernice flashed a sweet smile. "Hi, Mrs Casey."

"Afternoon, girls."

They hurriedly pushed Bonnie into her bedroom and closed the door.

"_What the hell were you doing last night?_" Bridget asked, keeping her voice low.

"You said Marko was an abusive, controlling creep!" Bernice added.

Bonnie knew they were snapping at her but she couldn't really concentrate on what they were saying. Their anger was making the smell of their blood richer. Delicious and enticing, it filled the room and Bonnie could feel her stomach tightening into cramps.

"I know. I wanted to talk to him," Bonnie said, trying to concentrate on the conversation. But that smell…

She hadn't expected to feel the hunger so quickly.

Bernice pointed a finger at her. "Oh, no you don't! You're not giving him another chance. Please! Don't do that!"

"Talking doesn't mean I'm giving him another chance!"

"Still!" Bridget argued. "It's a path you shouldn't go down."

Bernice had started on a rant. "Talking leads to seeing each other more. Seeing each other more leads to feelings creeping back. Feelings creeping back –."

"Bernie, I'm not going out with him again. When I broke up with him, I didn't exactly explain it. I just stopped seeing him. He wanted to know what was going on."

"Lie," Bernice snapped.

"It isn't."

"You keep playing with your hair. I know what that means."

Bonnie immediately stopped tugging at the ends of her hair. God, why couldn't Bridget or Bernice do this over the phone instead of coming to see her personally? They were getting angrier each second, making the scent of their blood stronger each time. Bonnie's teeth were starting to ache and she gritted them desperately. Her face was tingling. Was that a sign of her face changing?

"Sweetie, we're only worried about you," Bernice said, taking hold of her friend's shoulders. "You told us what Marko was like. Don't go back to him."

Bonnie chewed on her bottom lip. Her eyes were fixed on Bernice's neck. She could see the faint blue vein that was pulsing blood through; all exposed and silently begging her to rip into it.

"It's confusing," Bonnie said, tearing her eyes away.

"You really liked him." Her friend's tone was getting softer but Bridget was still ready to explode like a volcano.

"How is it confusing? The guy is a dick so you don't go out with him anymore! Simple."

Bernice turned to her sister. "It really is complicated. Believe me." She sighed and followed Bonnie to the bed who wanted to scream. She had been moving over there to get away from Bernice. Her neck was way too close for her liking but now her friend was following her and sitting right by her side.

"It's so stupid," Bridget continued.

"You're starting to sound like Alan Frog. You told me you were lecturing him about being a better friend," Bernice said.

"You did?" Bonnie asked.

Bridget shrugged. "This is different. Bonnie, I was totally, one hundred per cent there for you when you found out Marko was a sleaze. That wasn't your fault. But I'm going to have to be honest here. You're an idiot if you're considering going back to him."

_I'm not. I really do hate him. I'm secretly planning on killing him! _

Bonnie was desperate to say those words aloud. Desperate to tell them the truth because it did look like she was being stupid and she didn't particularly like that image. It only made her look like the dumb girls at school. Girls like that Imogen Reece in Bridget and Alan's year who stayed put with their asshole boyfriends.

She was already getting tired of these acts she had to put on. Acting was one of her skills, one of the very few things she was truly good at but it was already becoming mentally exhausting. Pretending to be human for everyone. Pretending to be accepting vampirism to Marko and the boys. Pretending that she was fit and healthy.

If she had to keep one more thing to herself she was most likely going to go berserk.

Bernice sighed, letting her head drop into her hands. "_Briiiiiid,_" she groaned. "Remember what we talked about? Voice in your head… sometimes it's not acceptable to say what you think out loud?"

"Someone has to give it to her straight. This kind of situation shouldn't be sugar-coated. Bonnie, you _will _get yourself into trouble –."

"Can you two just go?" Bonnie growled, rubbing her temples.

"Talk to us," Bernice urged. "We want to help."

"No. Just go! I know what I'm doing, okay?"

There was silence between the two sisters when Bridget huffed and spun on her heel.

"Fine! Run back to the fucker," Bridget snapped, opening the bedroom door and storming out. Bernice stayed on the bed, gripping Bonnie's shoulder. Bonnie wanted to grip her friend's neck…

"Sorry, what's she's trying to say is she's scared for you. Neither of us want to see him hurt you and we think that will happen if you're seeing him again. Do you remember what happened between me and Kit last year? It turned me into a mess," Bernice said.

"I know what I'm doing. It's hard to explain to you but I got it under control."

Bernice sighed. "You were always the one who stood up to guys when they started to mess you about. You stood up to Kit for me. Don't change that. Whatever you feel for Marko."

A small smile crept up on Bonnie's lips. "I can handle myself. I know what I'm doing."

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><p><strong>Update will be next Saturday. Please feel free to leave a comment or review and thank you very much for reading. :)<strong>


	10. Chapter 10

**Thank you to everyone who read and/or reviewed. :)  
><strong>

**Just a reply to the anonymous guest reviewer who's been sending me screaming rants: you need to chill the hell out and back off. I understand you like Edgar and Alan but what exactly do you expect me to do? I finished the story months ago. I'm following the events of the film and in case you haven't taken the time to notice or bothered to, this story is not and has never been about Edgar and Alan. The characters I've been focusing on and writing about are Marko and Bonnie. It's their story. There is no way I am going to go back through the whole story and randomly throw Edgar and Alan into every single chapter purely because you're unable to cope if they don't show up in every update. My advice? You're probably best to stop reading this fic because I'm not going to cave in to your screaming fits. Go use the search filter if you want an Edgar and Alan story focus because this isn't one of them. I am not going to add the Frog brothers into every chapter because you're yelling at me to do so. Any abusive rants you send from now on will be ignored. What you're doing is not constructive criticism. It is just shouting at someone and you will never get anyone responding positively to you if you carry on like that.**

**Sorry to everyone else who had to see that. Unfortunately, you can't respond to guests privately and I was probably going to explode if I didn't give them a piece of my mind. Anyhoo, I'm done. That's the last time I'm responding. On with the chapter! :)  
><strong>

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><p><em>I don't think I actually know what I'm doing.<em>

The pile of vampire books she had taken out from the library continued to be useless. The one thing she was relying on proved to be a bunch of old folkloric rubbish that didn't seem to fit with everything she had discovered so far. These vampires were more like actual demonic creatures, more horrific looking than that face Marko changed into.

She tossed another useless book onto the floor and sighed, falling backwards onto her pillows and staring up at the ceiling. There was a fly buzzing around and she watched it carefully. Its movements were slowing down and she followed its path easily with her eyes. It was almost at a snail pace. Such a slow movement, she could easily catch it and throw it out of the room.

The knock on her window snapped her out of her thoughts and the fly suddenly started to speed up, back to its normal pace. Bonnie sat up to see Star tapping against the window again.

"Let me in," she said and Bonnie stood up, lifting the window up and standing back so Star had enough space to climb in. Like Bonnie she had used the same lithe movement, not even getting caught or tangled in that long skirt. Star straightened up, brushing down her skirt and pinching at it to adjust.

"You're up early," Bonnie commented, nodding to the evening sky. It was still at that stage where it was full of burnt orange and red streaks as the sun started to disappear.

"It was harder than you think," Star said. "I wanted to get a chance to talk to you but it'll have to be quick. I need to be at the Boardwalk soon."

Bonnie frowned at the troubled look on Star's face. "What's up?"

Star's lips became even more pinched. Lines continued to crease her forehead. "I've been fooling around."

"You got another guy?"

"No. It's not like that. There was this guy the other night. I saw him at the concert and he was so interested." She broke off to smile sheepishly at Bonnie. "I couldn't help it, I liked it. I liked how he was looking at me. I liked that he followed me around the entire Boardwalk." She started laughing, shaking her head like she was reliving the memory.

"Since David showed his true colours and how much of a burden I feel to that gang it was nice to feel wanted. So I flirted back. David found out though." Her smile faded. "He wants me to kill him tonight. Ordered me to use his interest and make him my first kill. I refused but he threatened Laddie. Said he'll kill him…" Her voice trailed off and all she could manage was a weak shrug as her eyes watered up.

Watching a tear drop from Star's eye, Bonnie nodded. "You don't want to die. I get it. Why do you think I agreed to drink that blood?"

"That'll only work for so long. Marko's expecting you to kill soon. They all are. If you avoid it for too long they'll start to suspect you."

"Hopefully it won't be long."

"What's your plan?" Star asked, joining Bonnie on her bed. She picked up one of the library books.

"Well, I'm half-vampire and already discovering some of the benefits. Maybe I can use them to my advantage."

"How?"

"Maybe I can fight them."

"As a half? You can't. You're still weaker than them. Not only are they are full but I know none of them are new vampires. They know how to fight and defend themselves."

"Star you talk an awful lot about wanting to get away from it all but when it comes down to it, you don't want to try to help yourself."

"We can't fight them."

"Then how do you get away from them?" Bonnie snapped. "A cure won't solve all the problems. If they're alive they'll come after you. We need to kill them."

"I can't," Star argued. "Bonnie, it's the hunger. I might be a half-vampire but unless I feed I'm losing that strength. You'll feel it eventually."

"I'm still going to damn well try," Bonnie growled. "They're going to be a constant threat in my life if I don't get rid of them."

Star sighed. "You're an idiot."

"No, I'm a survivor and I'd like control of my life back. You don't want to help? Fine. But I'm not saving your ass for you. If you want help, you gotta do a bit of it yourself."

Star closed her eyes, taking in Bonnie's words. The copper haired girl wasn't listening. Too busy jumping to conclusions that Star was being selfish and useless. That was all very well but she didn't know. That was her problem. She hadn't properly seen Marko or the other boys as vampires. Whatever the girl had seen that night with Marko was nothing compared to what Star had seen. When it came down to it, Bonnie was never going to hold her own against them. They'd have her staked and burnt to ash in seconds.

"I need to go," she said, looking at the darkening sky.

"Are you going to kill this boy?" Bonnie asked.

"I don't think I'm going to have a choice. I've said no too many times now."

"So if you go all the way tonight you'll be one of them?"

"I don't know how this works. I've never seen it. Whether that loss of humanity is a sudden change or not."

"Don't betray me," Bonnie threatened, taking one step forward. "I'll do worse than a stake in the heart if you turn your back and tell the boys what I plan on doing. Try and remember that."

Star didn't say a word, turning away from Bonnie and climbing back out. There was a gust of wind and the sound of flapping wings as Star took off into the sky. Bonnie closed the window, her heart racing.

Damn, was everything about to be ruined? If Star had no other choice but to give in tonight she was going to lose that humanity. That part of her who didn't want any of this and was so desperate to get her humanity back.

She was biting her lip as she flicked through one of the books again. Maybe another page had magically appeared telling her what the cure was. She searched through, eyes flicking back and forth trying to find it.

"Shit!" she growled, throwing the book back on the bed. She whimpered, running her hands through her hair. What if Star told the boys everything the minute she fed off this boy? What if they came after her straight away to kill her tonight? Or worse…

What if they forced her to feed just like Star?

She opened up her drawer where four bottles of Holy Water were being kept. She dug them out, putting them into her bag and paused to glance at the comics they had been lying on. Edgar and Alan had given them to her after finding out about Marko and the boys, insisting they would be the key to her survival against the vampire threat.

The comics had gone straight into her drawer and she hadn't touched them once. After all, they were comics. What good would they do?

Well, what good had the books been on vampires? They were supposed to have been the ones to help her.

She picked one up and turned to the first page. A boy was sitting in his bed whittling a stake as he talked to a concerned friend about his girlfriend. The friend was unconvinced, insulting the girl and her choice to dump him for another guy. Bonnie had to groan. No wonder these comics were being sold for a cheap price at the store. The story and dialogue was already terrible and this was only the first page.

The boy kept arguing his case. The girlfriend had changed after meeting this strange guy in town. She had changed after their last meeting, not just in personality. The boy had noticed her aversion to sunlight, her strength, her lack of appetite, and finally, her reflection was disappearing.

Bonnie's eyes hovered over that page, reading the words over and over again. Aversion to sunlight? Check. Strength? Check. Lack of appetite? Check. Reflection?

Bonnie glanced up, seeing her own fading reflection frowning back at her.

Check.

Everything she was going through.

"You got to be kidding me," she said aloud, laughing in disbelief. She flicked further into the comic. There was a flashback moment of the girlfriend meeting with this strange guy. They were in some sort of abandoned house, all boarded up and decrepit. The strange guy was joined by two other people, another boy and a girl, and they were staring at the girlfriend who was reaching out for something. Another bark of disbelieving laughter escaped from Bonnie as she noticed the girl was reaching out for a bottle. A simple wine bottle that hadn't been encrusted with bright jewels like the one David had but containing the same thing nonetheless. The stranger was coaxing her to take a sip, promising her that it would keep her the same age she was now. Make her invincible.

"Shit," Bonnie muttered, turning to the back page and the author's face staring back at her. He wasn't old like she had expected. Younger, maybe early twenties? He posed, tall and straight with a solemn face. Did he know about vampires?

She dug into her purse, counting her money and stuffed it in her bag. A trip the comic book store was very much needed now.

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><p><strong>Thank you for reading. :) I'm away next weekend so I'll update this coming Thursday instead.<strong>


	11. Chapter 11

**Thank you to reviewers, readers, and new followers. :)  
><strong>

**Ellie: Thank you for your review. :) Glad you're enjoying the story.**

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><p>Bonnie kept her sunglasses on at the Boardwalk, still struggling with the bright, flashing lights all around. She dodged easily through the crowds, snaking her way through and flinching every time somebody got too close to her. Every time she heard that small boom, boom, boom of a heartbeat and the fresh smell of blood her face tingled and teeth ached. She gritted her teeth and hurried away from each person. Maybe it was a bad idea to come to the Boardwalk when the whole place was filled with people. There was a dizzying smell of blood wherever she turned and those heartbeats were starting to get loud. Louder than the chattering voices.<p>

"You look ready to pounce on somebody." Marko laughed, appearing near her and he placed hand on her shoulder. Bonnie ignored him, glaring at every person that walked past. She was barely aware of him leaning down to whisper in her ear.

"I wouldn't recommended killing somebody right here."

"I'm starving," Bonnie mumbled and her stomach cramped in agreement. "Fuck, get me out of here."

He led her to a quieter spot where the boys were parked. Laddie was sitting on the back of Dwayne's bike quietly but Star was nowhere to be seen.

"You look like you're having loads of fun," Bonnie remarked sarcastically to the boys as they just sat.

"We are." David grinned, glancing at her once before looking around again. Bonnie followed his gaze at Star who was wandering around through the crowds, eyes roaming.

"Who's she looking for?" Bonnie asked.

"No-one special," David answered. Bonnie waited for him to speak again but after a few seconds of awkward silence and staring at him, she figured his answer was going to remain short and clipped. She looked back at Marko for more answers but he was only smirking and remained silent as well.

"So she's hunting?" Bonnie asked and thought: _shit. She's going through with it._

"Maybe."

These short, cryptic answers from David were starting to get annoying. She sighed, giving up and moved over to Paul and Dwayne with Marko following.

Paul grinned as he settled back on his bike. "How're we doing, newbie?"

Bonnie shrugged. "Okay, I guess."

"Almost kill anyone yet?" Dwayne asked, an amused smile creeping up on his face.

"Did catch her prowling the Boardwalk," Marko teased, nudging her back with his elbow.

"There's not much to say," Bonnie said. "I've felt hungry, I can open a window without having a battle with it, and I've been able to follow a fly with my eyes."

"Exciting times," Paul mocked playfully.

Bonnie grinned back, snickering along with the boys. "I know, right? I'm a total bad-ass. So, anything happening tonight? Are you expecting me to go prowling about with Star for my first kill?"

"Actually there's something we might need to do tonight," Marko said, hopping back onto his bike. He gestured to the rest of his gang. "Me and the guys, I mean."

"Something that I'm not allowed to know about?" Bonnie asked, raising an eyebrow at him with a smirk. "I'm not stupid. I know you have a few things you're keeping from me."

When he responded with his own grin, she shrugged and raised her hands. "It's cool. I guess you can't properly trust me yet," she said. "I'm just going to be around the Boardwalk. Have fun with the secret mission." She nodded once to Paul and Dwayne before wandering off. She pretended to be browsing the stalls, feigning interest in a top as she caught sneaky glimpses of the boys. They were all watching Star as she walked up to a curly haired boy, someone who she was sure looked familiar in some way but she couldn't quite put her finger on it. He was too preoccupied with a piercing happening, almost leering awkwardly over the frightened looking girl as she braced herself to get it done. He didn't even see Star slink up from behind him and whisper into his ear. The minute she did, she was strolling off and like a keen puppy he was following her. Practically glued himself to her wrist.

As Star grinned over her little stalker Bonnie tore herself away and wandered off, not really wanting to watch this innocent guy get lured off to an untimely death. Part of her felt sick as she imagined what the death might look like. How Star might look when feeding and giving in to the rest of the demon. But then as she imagined all that blood, she was feeling her own, almost compulsive, part that ached for a taste too. To tear into someone's neck.

She shuddered, snapping herself back into reality and quickened her pace, almost power-walking to the comic book store. Edgar had his back to her at the counter, absorbed in some black and white late night horror film while Alan was arranging The Fantastic Four section towards the back.

Bonnie grabbed a comic from the bargain bucket and held it in front of her face, sneaking in to go right to the end of the aisle where the horror comics were kept.

"That's a really shit attempt at hiding," Alan muttered and she peered over the top of the comic. Alan was staring back at her, mouth twitching now and again as if he was desperate to laugh at her but also wanted to remain poker-faced.

She set it down. "How did you know it was me?"

He turned to face her properly, looking amused. "You always look like a rainbow. It's hard to miss you."

She grinned back. After a creepy, scary vampire gang it was nice seeing and even hearing the socially inept, monotone Frogs. Completely innocent and she was missing innocent at the moment. Innocent and ignorance actually.

"You're venturing outside," he pointed out, walking up to her. She braced herself, already smelling his blood trickling around his veins. Her nostrils flared at the scent but she kept herself tense and jaw clenched. At the same time she tried to look casual, folding her arms and putting weight into one side of her body, left hip sticking out.

"I thought you were on the vampire Most Wanted list," he said.

"I haven't seen them for a while actually," she lied. "I think Marko secretly hopes I'll turn so they've backed off."

"Still, they could be waiting for you to do this," Alan warned.

"I needed to get out. I actually need some help." Bonnie picked up a vampire comic. "This is the only thing I can find that talks about the vampires I've seen."

"You sound surprised."

"Well, it's a comic. C'mon, Alan, comics are supposed to be fun!"

"This author knows what he's on about," Alan said.

"Who is this guy?" Bonnie asked, opening up to the author page. "Blake Riccelli? Do you know him? Is he a vampire hunter?"

"I don't know. We just sell his comics. I've never met or seen the guy before. His bio says he lives in San Diego with his fiancee and two dogs."

Bonnie sighed. "Sounds too normal to be an actual vampire hunter. Maybe a coincidence."

"Maybe. So you need help?"

"I think I probably should get as much knowledge as I can on vampires. This isn't me saying I want to start hunting with you and Edgar," she said quickly when Alan began to open his mouth. "I don't know how to fight. But I can defend myself at home. I need to know more."

"I'm surprised they haven't tried anything yet," Alan said and Bonnie wasn't sure if she was imagining the suspicion in his voice.

"Maybe they're waiting for the right moment," Bonnie suggested and pointed to her sunglasses. "Thought the sunglasses would help disguise me if they're waiting for me to come to the Boardwalk."

Alan smiled. "Like I said, you look like your usual colourful self. It's a shit disguise." He grabbed a few vampire comics from the horror shelves and gestured her to follow him to the counter.

"Look whose joined the outside world again," he said to Edgar.

Edgar took a quick, frowning glance at her. "You're still alive."

Bonnie shrugged. "For now. I don't know what Marko and that gang are up to." She stayed relaxed as she leaned against the counter, peering over her sunglasses to make proper eye contact with Edgar who had started a staring match between them. He was looking for the slightest sign of lying; she knew it. Even Alan kept a careful watch on her as he totalled up the comics. They kept sharing a look between them as if they were communicating mentally with each other.

"Stop looking like that at each other," she snapped. "I know you too well, you know. I'm just as surprised as you that I'm still here. But it's been too long and I'm freaking out. I think it's time I start to get my undead facts together."

"Even if they're playing with you it's weird that they haven't even tried _anything,_" Edgar said and pointed at her face. "Light too bright?"

Bonnie sighed at him. "I'm trying to hide myself."

Edgar nodded but he sneakily cast a glance downwards onto the glass counter, eyes flickering up to Bonnie. She frowned, following his gaze when a sickening realisation came over. The glass caught their reflections and she instantly thought of how hers was looking right now. She peeked down and saw the three of them, all the same. She wasn't faded out; completely normal and she had to hold back a sigh of relief.

Still, Edgar didn't look too convinced. Maybe more confused but she could sense the doubts in his head. Trying her best to ignore him, she handed the money to Alan when he told her the price.

"Have you seen Marko about recently?" she asked the brothers.

"Nothing. But more missing people," Alan said.

"You know that really strict security guard? Fat with a large moustache?" Edgar asked.

"Oh yeah," Bonnie said.

"He's gone."

She could picture who Edgar meant. She'd seen him around lots of times getting rid of any teens who looked like they were causing trouble. He was always kicking people off the Boardwalk and she remembered Marko and the gang had come across him. It was only a matter of time before those boys got sick of the guy trying to push them around and constantly watching their actions.

"Bastards," Bonnie whispered, ducking her head.

"We're going to kill them, you know," Alan told her, passing her the bag of comics. "We just need to know where their lair is and we're killing them."

"Guys, I've seen what vampires are like. Remember that night I saw Marko kill? Believe me, you don't stand a chance."

"We're vampire hunters," Edgar said, like he was reminding her but that didn't mean anything. They stalked the streets at night with DIY stakes and Holy water stolen from the local church. That's all they had ever done.

"Have you ever staked a vampire before?" Bonnie asked.

That got them. As soon as she asked that question Edgar and Alan exchanged surprised looks and fell silent.

"We've been a little unlucky coming across vampires," Alan mumbled.

Bonnie raised an eyebrow. "Have you even _come across_ a vampire before?"

"Yes!" Edgar answered, a little too quickly. "Yes, we have. From Marko's gang actually. That night you found out about him."

"And what exactly happened?"

"Your scepticism is very insulting," Edgar snapped, avoiding her question.

"We know what we're doing," Alan added, also looking equally offended.

"I'm just warning you. You're going to get a real shock if you try and go up against them," she said. "Don't do anything stupid."

She did actually care if they got themselves hurt trying to attack a gang of deadly vampires. But there was also a selfish reason for putting them off. If they got closer to that gang they'd find her out as well and see her as an enemy despite her reasons and despite the fact she was only half. A vampire was a vampire to them. She already had Marko and the boys as a threat; she didn't want Edgar and Alan Frog against her either and trying to stake her.

"They're killing people, Bonnie. They're going to kill you," Alan argued. "I'm not having that."

"Santa Carla is _our _town, not theirs. We know the truth about what's really happening here," Edgar said. "So that means it's up to us to stop it."

Bonnie was about to argue back, already opening her mouth but closed it quickly.

"You could still help," Edgar suggested and nodded to the comics. "You seem to be taking things more seriously now."

Bonnie shook her head. "I can't."

"Why not? If they're a threat, you could help us and do something about it."

"Let me sort out this problem in my own way," she snapped at him, more clipped than she intended and Edgar was back to frowning at her. His lips were pursed and she knew she was back to giving him suspicions again.

"Don't have a go at me about this, okay?" She grabbed the comics of the counter and left the shop. The crowds were getting bigger and the smell of blood around her was more intense. She almost leaned into a passer-by to sniff at them because of how appetizing their blood smelt. Her stomach gave a grumble before she felt a sharp stab, as if someone had slid a knife through her. She dropped the comics, suddenly crying out in pain and almost falling to the floor. Every whiff of blood she got sent another spasm through her. Forcing herself to stand up she grabbed her comics and dashed off through the curious and confused crowds.

At the entrance to the comic store, Edgar was watching with one eyebrow raised.

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><p><strong>Thanks for reading and feel free to leave a review. I'll update next Wednesday.<strong>


	12. Chapter 12

**Thank you to Freax and Ellie for your reviews. :)**

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><p>Edgar was the one behind the counter today when Bridget walked in. She nodded casually to him before leaning on the glass.<p>

"You're in here a lot now," Edgar commented.

"Am I not supposed to be?" Bridget asked, furrowing her brows. "This is a public shop, right? For people who want to buy comics?"

He grunted at her sarcasm, shaking his head when he saw Alan catch sight of Bridget. As soon as he did, he stopped hanging up new comics and came over to them. Edgar gave his brother an unimpressed glare who only responded with his own confused expression before turning to Bridget.

"What's the verdict on Spider Man?"

"I'm not impressed you introduced me to Gwen Stacy and she ends up dead. Why did they kill her off? She was awesome."

Alan quirked an eyebrow up. "Gwen? Really?"

"Yeah, she's smart. I like her. Why?" She put her hands on her hips as Alan wandered around the counter to join his brother who had turned his back on them.

"I prefer Mary Jane Watson," Alan said. "Are you after more comics?"

She was flicking through a stack that had been dumped on the counter. "You may have converted me. I guess they're not completely stupid."

"Well, I never thought they were stupid."

Bridget almost groaned at the voice but she held her tongue, instead closing her eyes for a brief second and shaking her head slightly. Gritting her teeth, she turned her head to look at Charlotte.

For fuck's sake. How much eye make-up could she put on? Charlotte stood straight with her hair tied up and out of her face for a change, her eyes surrounded by streaks of purple and pink eye shadow that ended in harsh flicks. Her lips were glistening with pink gloss. She smiled and placed a comic on the counter, her eyes glued on Alan who stared back as if he didn't recognise her. He had never looked so stunned at a girl's appearance before and her smile widened at his reaction.

"Any Spider Man comics you'd recommend?" she asked, copying the way Bridget leaned on the counter. Bridget had to take a quick glance down at herself. Ankles crossed over each other, both elbows on the glass and head titled to the side. Exactly how Charlotte had just positioned herself, the only difference being Charlotte had a better cleavage showing. With a sigh escaping her lips, Bridget stood straight, hands on her hips as her and Edgar raised one of their eyebrows at each other and then towards Charlotte and Alan.

"Converting too?" Alan asked.

Charlotte laughed and tossed her blonde ponytail behind her shoulder. "I think I am." She glimpsed back at Bridget when Alan left to collect a few comics for her and flashed a smug smile. Bridget stared back, completely poker-faced.

"There's no need to be smug. You've always been welcome to him. I'm not interested."

When her friend scoffed, Bridget sighed and her hands rose in a helpless gesture, dropping back to her sides.

"I'm not competing with you, Char! I've never been competition to begin with."

She glanced at Edgar as if he could somehow become her saviour. Another person to help her get Charlotte's stupid ideas out of her head but he shrugged, his attention focusing on another customer walking into the store.

"I have a customer to talk to," he mumbled, walking around the counter and over to the boy walking in. Bridget gave him a glare.

_Huh. Some fucking help you are._

She kept her scowl as he marched over to the young boy who could looked like a male clone of Bonnie with all the different colours and mismatched patterns he wore. He was groaning as Edgar came towards him.

"I actually gave these two issues to Brid the other day," Alan said, joining the girls again.

She heard Charlotte mumble: "Brid?" and cast another sharp glare towards her. Bridget was getting so close to screaming in her face and slapping her until sense poured back into her. Wasn't he allowed to shorten her name? Wasn't she allowed to _have_ her name shortened?

As Charlotte continued to glimpse at her former friend from the corner of her eye, Bridget continued to stand there blank and trying not to react in any way. She kept her fists clenched in her jacket pockets, using it to remind herself to stay calm and not strike out even though she was desperate to resort to a cat fight.

_She's not worth it. She's not worth it. She's not worth it…_

"Brid wasn't impressed. Let me know what you think about them," Alan told Charlotte who smiled sweetly and passed him the money.

"I'm sure I'll love it. Spider Man sounds awesome."

_I think I'm going to vomit, _Bridget thought, rolling her eyes.

"I can give you some more Iron Man comics if you want," Alan said, turning his attention back to Bridget which made Charlotte scowl again when he wasn't looking. The bag of comics had been placed on the counter and she grabbed them, leaning forward.

"Thanks for the comics," she said, catching his attention again and that flirty smile crept back on her face. She even dared to brush her hand against his. "Nice seeing you again, Alan." Slowly, she turned away, ignoring Bridget and walked out.

"Charlotte looked different," Alan commented and Bridget grinned at him.

"Noticing things, are you?"

That familiar confused look came back on his face. "What do you mean?"

She sighed. Maybe she should tell him how Charlotte felt. Who knows? It could get him interested if he thought someone was seriously crushing on him. And maybe get Charlotte off her back for once if Alan did start to pay the sort of attention her friend was trying to get from him.

"Dude," Bridget said. "Charlotte's got a total lady boner for you."

"A _what?_"

_Oh, bless him._

"She's into you. Big time."

"You mean she likes me?"

"Bingo," she sang and laughed at the wide eyed expression on his face. "Why do you think she's changed her appearance so much? All the make-up and actually speaking to you for once? She's trying to get you to notice her."

"Oh," Alan mumbled, frowning. "Wow. I – uh – didn't know."

"You don't know much about girls, do you?"

He shrugged, face growing red and she laughed at him.

He scowled. "What?"

"You're like an alien sometimes." She sighed with a smile, leaning back on the counter in her usual stance. "Do you think you'd like Charlotte?"

Redder and redder and redder. "I… don't know?"

"Get to know her a bit more."

"Can… do?" He suddenly cleared his throat. "So, more Iron Man next or do you want something different?"

She smirked at him as he quickly changed the subject back to comics and gave a light shrug, allowing the topic of Charlotte to disappear. The poor guy looked like he was going to explode from embarrassment.

"Mix it up a bit? I'll take another Iron Man and something different."

He nodded, smiling, and she noticed his posture was becoming more relaxed. "On it."

"I'm surprised these guys aren't forcing this crap into your hands," a boy said next to her and a horror comic with snarling, frothing wolves on the cover was dumped on the counter. Edgar was marching around to the till, grabbing a bag as he did so. Bridget looked up to see the fashion inept boy Edgar had immediately approached. She wrinkled her nose at the cover.

"That looks… interesting?"

"It's more for survival," Edgar said.

The boy grinned. "First you tell me vampires exist and now werewolves?"

Edgar sighed. "They're not werewolves," he said as if it should have been obvious. "They're Hounds of Hell."

"Of course," the boy said, still grinning at Bridget. "Silly me. I always get them confused."

Bridget snorted and the boy extended his hand. "I'm Sam Emerson. I just moved here."

"And you're already being hounded by these two? You poor thing." She accepted his handshake. "I'm Bridget Teahan. Don't worry about these two. You'll get used to Edgar and Alan."

Edgar grunted at her comment and she snickered. "So, I guess you'll be starting at Montessari in September?" she asked Sam.

"I know it begins with M. Must be."

"What year?"

"I'll be a Junior."

"Same. I'll keep a look out for you."

Sam chuckled. "Finally! Some friendly, normal people around here."

"Like I said, you'll get used to Edgar and Alan." Bridget smiled, laughing when Alan came back with three comics and raised an eyebrow at the two of them. He seemed to straighten up when he saw Sam.

"Run into any vampires yet?"

"By the way, we all ignore their vampire talk," Bridget whispered to Sam.

"Just because you haven't seen any doesn't mean they aren't real."

"No, I've never seen a vampire before because they don't exist," she argued back.

Alan bit his tongue. If only she'd talk to Bonnie. Didn't Bridget mention she had been hounded by Marko's gang? She had no idea how close she had been to one. So close to danger.

"Notice the disappearances around here?" Edgar asked her and Sam.

"I noticed I'm living in the Murder Capital of the World. Not very comforting," Sam said.

Bridget shrugged. "This place is kind of a shithole. A lot of people do disappear but I bet most of them are actually runaways."

"They're not running away," Alan pointed out.

She exchanged a bored look with Sam as Alan calculated the price of all her comics and read out the overall cost to her. He was still frowning as she passed him the money, almost disappointed with her and Sam. Bridget rolled her eyes at his reaction. It only made her think how welcome Charlotte was to him. Not only was he clueless and an absolute nightmare when it came to girls but it was a well-known fact that the Frog brothers were on the loopy side and, if anything, crazy was a huge turn off. She was getting too much crazy from Charlotte and Bonnie at the moment.

"Once you know what you're looking for I bet you'll notice them," Edgar told them. "Pale, obviously. Sleep all day, awake all night –."

"That sounds like a lot of people around here," Bridget interrupted. "Have you seen the Boardwalk during the day? People are either working or resting off a hangover. Loads of people come out at night because things actually start to happen."

"Right?" Sam laughed. "You're actually describing my brother. Mike's adapting well to the Santa Carla lifestyle."

"How do you mean?" Alan asked.

"He's got in with this biker gang. He's actually after this chick who's with them. Like, we're talking sex glands on the verge of exploding when he drooled after her the other night. But they let him hang out with them last night and he's already completely changed. You should have seen him earlier. Looked like he'd been out getting wasted. Kinda sad, really. Mike has always tried fitting in with cooler crowds. Not that these guys actually look cool." He stopped briefly to share a smile with Bridget who was nodding. She knew too well of people who tried to change to fit in. Maybe this Mike guy and Charlotte should get together and she kept herself from making an amused snort.

Alan pressed on. "What biker gang?"

"Not sure. Just a gang of four guys. Got this whole rocker, hair metal thing going on."

"I know who you're talking about," Bridget said. She glanced at the Frog brothers who were glimpsing at each other knowingly. They almost looked like they were having a telepathic conversation going on.

"You've seen them?" Sam asked.

"Yeah, total dicks, the lot of them. They're trouble. My friend Bonnie is involved with them."

"She doesn't have dark, curly hair, does she?"

"No. That's some other girl who hangs out with them."

"You said she _is _involved. Present tense," Edgar said.

"Yeah…" Bridget bit her lip. "Look, don't say I told you but I think she's back with Marko after all the shit he gave her. I saw her going off with him the other night."

"_What?_" Alan snapped. Edgar was swearing aloud as he looked away angrily.

"I've already lectured her about it but she claims she's just sorting stuff out with him. Bull shit. I know she's dating him again." She took the bag of comics. "Don't say I mentioned this, okay? I'll hunt you both down if she comes hunting _me._" She turned to Sam. "Just tell Mike to be careful. I think those guys are really bad news."

With a weak smile and a wave, she walked out of the store, leaving Sam to try and take the third horror comic that had been forced upon him while Edgar continued swearing and yelling over this Bonnie person.

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><p><strong>Thank you very much for reading and please feel free to leave a review. :) Update will be on Saturday to get back into normal routine. ^^<strong>


	13. Chapter 13

**Thank you to everyone who read and reviewed and thank you to the new followers and for adding the story to your favourites.**

**Ellie: Haha, I feel a bit for Charlotte too. Unrequited crushes are always horrible to go through. Thanks for reviewing. ^^**

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><p>The sea was wild and crashing against the cliffs. Bonnie looked around groggily, leaving her bicycle near where the boys had parked theirs. Even the fresh sea air wasn't waking her up and she carefully stepped down the swaying, wooden stair case, trying not to be tempted into collapsing right there to go back to sleep. Since buying those comics last night she had promised herself she would spend the day researching and trying to find out anything about vampires. But it was almost dark and she had been sleeping the <em>whole freaking day. <em>Her mother had to finally drag her out of bed, snapping and carrying on because summer holidays were still no excuse to waste time by sleeping.

Her eyes easily adjusted to the dark this time as she crept through the entrance and slid down gracefully, levitating a little as she avoided jumping off the last large step and floating down. Every time she gave in to one of those little abilities she had gained there would be also be a guilty twinge in her stomach. In all honesty, she wasn't supposed to be making use of her vampire traits. It was allowing herself to give into temptation, especially when she found herself amused by it.

The cave was silent and the boys were nowhere to be seen. But Star and Laddie were asleep on the large bed and Bonnie dashed over to them, shaking the girl on the shoulder.

"_Star," _she whispered. "Wake up."

Star groaned and her eyes fluttered open, fighting to close again. She propped herself up on one arm, blinking in confusion.

"Did you feed?" Bonnie asked.

"Wha…?"

"_Did you feed?" _Bonnie bit her lip. She had no idea what she would do if Star had turned. Well, there was one option and it involved driving something sharp through the girl's heart but it would be easy to get away with that?

"Did I…?" Her eyes suddenly went wide. "No. Oh, Bonnie, they turned him!"

"I thought you were supposed to kill him?" Bonnie said, sitting on the bed next to Star when she sat up. She felt her shoulders sag though and her rapid heartbeat slowed down.

"That was the plan. David threatened me to make him my first kill. And I was doing everything he wanted. I flirted and Michael followed me. He invited me to go get food and I thought that was going to be it but then David and the others came over." She groaned, swinging her legs over and resting her bare feet on the cold floor.

"I don't get it. I thought David was mad about the flirting and that's why he was forcing me to kill Michael. I thought I was being punished. But they brought him here and turned him. I don't understand why they want him. Maybe they're still punishing me?"

Bonnie sighed as Star dropped her head in her hands and groaned in frustration. She was starting to shake and Bonnie put a hand on her shoulder, gently rubbing back and forth.

"I can't take any more of this." Star sniffed and lifted her head up. "How do you feel?"

"Freaking hungry," Bonnie groaned. "I didn't expect to feel so… vampire like so soon. I can smell blood everywhere. I can hear my parents' heartbeats constantly. And I'm already sleeping all day and getting up at night. There are so many things different about me. The way I move and react…" Her voice trailed off and she shuddered. "Honestly, I'm feeling less human each night. And the more things I discover about being a vampire, the more I'm actually enjoying it."

"It's so easy," Star agreed, smiling sympathetically at her. "Sometimes I start to feel like I'm liking it too."

"I wake up flying and I can move quicker and more gracefully. I'm stronger. And there this was condition I had. I was in the middle of getting tested for it for confirmation but I know I had it. And it's gone now. I know because I can feel it. I feel so much better." She gulped. "And I'm pleased it's gone. Part of me doesn't want to go back to that."

"That's normal. If it was something really bad, why would you?"

"But I want to be human. I want these vampires defeated and I want to stay human. I don't want to give in."

"Have you found anything yet?"

"No. I haven't been awake to do the research and the comics I have only tell me what I already know about vampires. One of the new ones I got is about Hounds of Hell which is useless because none of them obviously own a dog. So far there hasn't been anything on reversing the change."

When Star sighed, Bonnie kept her head high. "I'm not giving up. I'll find something."

"I know you think you've solved a problem by turning half but they'll push you into feeding soon. And the suspicions will start again when you refuse. Even Marko. I wouldn't underestimate him, you know. He'll easily turn on you if he has to."

Their surroundings had darkened although Bonnie could still see sharply and there was an echo of bats screeching deep inside the cave. Bonnie shuddered, her gut telling her what that might be and she stood up, folding her arms and bracing herself as she waited for those four vampires to appear.

"Remember, you're still angry with me," Bonnie whispered and walked away from Star who nodded and stayed sitting on the bed, turning around to wake Laddie. Bonnie paced about; taking in the trinkets and posters the boys had taken to decorate the place with. She glimpsed back at Star who was scowling at her and keeping quiet. Bonnie had to fight back a smile. The girl might not be able to get her act together and sort out her own problems but at least she knew how to pretend when asked. The boys came out from the corner of the cave where another large hole was and David raised an eyebrow at Star's scowling and Bonnie's glaring.

"Have we interrupted something?" David asked, eyes flickering back and forth between the two girls.

Bonnie shrugged, eyes meeting Marko who grinned.

"Girls, play nice," David said, grinning. "We're a family." He flew into the middle of the cave, landing perfectly on two feet and looked around. "No Michael?"

"Who?" Bonnie asked.

"You're not the only newbie, girl," Paul said, going straight for the stereo. "We got ourselves another new vamp."

"Getting a bit big for a vampire pack," Bonnie remarked.

David shrugged. "We'll manage." His head suddenly stared up at the ceiling of the cave and he grinned. "Be right back, boys." He sauntered casually to the entrance, disappearing as he headed outside. Star was still keeping quiet as she woke Laddie up, Dwayne and Paul were lighting fires and their own cigarettes. Bonnie remained standing there until she noticed Marko patting the space next to him on the sofa. She trudged over; arms still folded and she plonked herself down, falling backwards into the dusty cushions. Her feet didn't even reach the ground. She stayed tense with folded arms, even when Marko swung an arm around her shoulders and she sensed his gaze on her. She glimpsed at him.

"Hi," she said.

"Something up?"

She shook her head and Marko nodded over to Star who was standing up with wide eyes as David and an unfamiliar boy walked in.

"What's she said?"

"Just the usual. I'm a hypocrite. I must be messed up for choosing this. Blah, blah,_ blah_."

He laughed. "Ignore her. She just can't handle her choice. Stupid bitch shouldn't have got herself involved with us in the first place."

"None of you like her, do you?" Bonnie asked.

"I think she could cause trouble."

"Glad you could join us, Michael," David said. He gestured to Paul who already had a cigarette rolled up and passed it to the new boy who took it obediently. Bonnie gave him a quick glance over. He wore a leather jacket, dirty jeans and a white t-shirt, almost looking like one of the boys already but not quite. He couldn't keep his eyes off Star who stayed near the bed, unsure of whether to go greet him or stay there and avoid all communication with him.

"I don't think you had a proper introduction last night," David continued and pointed to each one of them as he said their name. "You already know Star. Laddie, Dwayne, Paul, Marko, and Bonnie."

_I definitely know you, _Bonnie thought. The memory was coming back the more she took in Michael's appearance. That day at the diner after Bonnie had been to the hospital. There had been a family who had come in to eat; a woman and two boys and they had just moved to Santa Carla. Bonnie's heart felt like it had dropped to her stomach. She had remembered hoping that the new family would avoid vampires and wouldn't be targeted by them. But now the eldest boy stood in the cave, already a pallid colour and a half vampire. What a welcome.

"Michael was telling me he's just moved to the area," David said to everyone, acting like a teacher introducing the shy, new pupil to the class.

"Where from dude?" Paul asked, cracking open a can of beer.

"Phoenix," Michael answered. His eyes were still on Star. Bonnie watched silently as David's gaze flickered back and forth between Star and Michael who were starting to have an awkward staring moment going on. Instead of being angry that this new guy was clearly trying to move in on his chick, David chuckled and slapped Michael on the back.

"Star can pierce ears," he said and Michael blinked, straightening up.

"Huh?"

There was an echo of snickering from Marko, Paul, and Dwayne. Michael glanced around uneasily, realising that the others were laughing at him. Hesitantly the right corner of his mouth tugged up and he too laughed albeit nervously. Bonnie sat there rolling her eyes. This guy had no idea how to deal with the boys.

"Star can pierce ears," David repeated, slowly. "She'll pierce yours."

"Um…"

"Michael, you want to be one of us, don't you?"

"Sure."

David nodded and gestured him over to Star. "Then come get your ear pierced."

Star was sighing as she went over to a box and started rummaging through it, beckoning Michael over. He warily walked over and she tried to flash a brave smile at him.

"It won't hurt," she told him. "You'll be fine."

"How about some food?" David asked and immediately looked towards Bonnie and Marko. She felt Marko tap her on the leg and when she glanced at him he nodded towards the entrance. Without a word she followed him out but paused once outside the cave and stood with her arms folded and an eyebrow rose up at him. He turned back.

"What?" he asked.

"David says food and off you go?" She flicked her wrist forward and made the sound of a whip.

"If I wasn't fine with it, I wouldn't go. Believe me. It's hard getting me to do things I don't want to do."

"You still looked whipped there," she said with a shrug and walked past him, heading straight for the stairs. He took her wrist as she walked by.

"Fly," he said.

"Fly?"

Marko grinned and pointed up to the cliff. "Haven't you flown yet?"

"I've found myself hovering above my bed," Bonnie said and he laughed. He started to hover on the spot.

"Just like you send messages to your brain to move your arm or leg, do that to push yourself up from the ground. Think about it."

He still had her hands as she closed her eyes and did what he told her to. She tried to imagine gravity disappearing from her, creating a new force that she willed herself to push up from. And suddenly she was aware of feeling lighter and the ground disappearing. She opened her eyes and looked down at Marko. Then down at her feet. She was suspended in the air, slowly bobbing up and down and she instinctively gripped tighter onto Marko's hands.

"There we go." Marko smiled. "Pretty awesome, right?"

She laughed, looking up as she floated higher. This was such an incredible feeling. The breeze brushed around her, whipping her hair. Who knew flying could feel like freedom? She could go anywhere she wanted.

She lifted her legs backwards, managing to move into a horizontal position and she could hear the sound of wings flapping as she did so. She frowned, looking back to see if she had actually sprouted wings but there was no sign of anything. Marko was next to her, pointing in the direction of town.

"Come on," he said and she followed him as they flew higher into the night sky, almost disappearing in the clouds and then soaring straight ahead. Bonnie watched the ground far below her whiz by with her mouth parted.

"You're loving this, aren't you?" Marko asked. He was smiling when she looked at him and she beamed despite the nagging voice in her head. She couldn't help show her joy but she also couldn't help warn herself that this was because there was vampire blood in her system and her being was entirely wrong and evil. The flying, the strength, the health… it all still came at a price: the need and urge to kill.

"This is actually freaking amazing," she admitted despite her worried thoughts. "Where are we going?"

"Here." He suddenly dipped down, arms resting by his sides and she copied him, feeling her speed increase. They were heading towards a dark alley and she straightened up, landing smoothly on both feet. For a second her legs felt like jelly. She steadied herself reaching out automatically to grab onto Marko's arm until she stopped wobbling and elbowed him when he started snickering.

"Should have mentioned that can happen when you first start to fly."

"Jerk," she muttered but grinned up at him. They were outside a pizza joint, around where the back entrance was. Bonnie could catch the smells of pepperoni, cheese, chicken... warm dough. If she had been fully human her stomach would be growling at all those different smells mixing together. She'd be rummaging in her pocket for money to go and have a naughty trip inside, emerging out with a large pizza box full of unhealthy goodness.

"Pizza tonight?" she asked, turning to him. She frowned at the wicked grin on his face and he raised a finger to his lips, pulling her to a dumpster nearby. They crouched down and Bonnie began to bite her lip, noticing the hungry gleam in Marko's eyes. There was laughter and shouting coming from inside the takeaway shop and a boy walked out, carrying three large pizza boxes. Marko put his hand on her shoulder.

"Thought you might be hungry," he whispered. "Go kill him."

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><p><strong>Thank you for reading and feel free to leave a review. Update will be next Saturday. ^^ <strong>


	14. Chapter 14

**Thank you to CastleRockGirl for reviewing and everyone who read the last chapter. :)**

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><p><em>Oh no, no, no! <em>

As soon as Marko uttered those words 'kill him' in her ear, she jerked away from him and crawled backwards into the wall. Her mouth parted in horror.

_It's too soon! I need more time._

"I can't do this," she whispered.

"You have to," Marko said and she noticed the snappish tone in his voice. "This is what you chose, Bonnie."

She shook her head. "I don't think I can."

"You can because you're feeling the hunger. You've started feeling the need for blood. Once you do it, that's it. You're one of us and you won't care anymore. It's easy."

She frowned at him. "So it was that easy to kill your best friend?"

He stared back at her without a hint of sympathy or regret. "I told you before how easy it was." He tugged on her arm and looked back at the pizza boy. The guy had put the boxes into the back of his car and was now leaning against the wall, looking around first before he took a cigarette pack from his back trouser pocket and took the tip of one between his teeth.

"You know, David still doesn't trust you," Marko whispered to her and she closed her eyes.

"I know. I know I'm not safe yet. You're not getting how hard this is for me. If I kill tonight, that's it. I'm not going back home tonight. I'm never going to be myself ever again. I thought I'd have longer anyway. Like I'd have time to say goodbye and –."

"And what? Pack your stuff? Leave a running away note? Your folks will never give up on you if it looks like you've run away and there's a chance you're alive. This is Santa Carla. All you have to do is disappear without a trace and the police won't bother searching for you. You'll be dead immediately and everyone around here knows bodies are never found. That's the best way to do it."

"My parents will still be upset if they think I've died."

"But they won't look for you. That's what we need." He pushed her forward towards the pizza boy and nudged her sharply. "Do it now. Don't think about it. Just do it."

She couldn't help concentrate on that beating heart that was getting louder and louder in her ears. Her stomach grumbled, her nostrils flared at the sniff of blood lingering in the air, growing stronger as she walked closer. Some distant part of her mind was screaming orders at herself, demanding her to stop getting nearer. She was slowly being hypnotised by that smell, allowing it to take over her mind and let her instincts gain control of her body.

And right now her instincts told her to feed.

The pizza boy had noticed her coming up to him. "Um… hi?"

She stopped, eyes meeting his.

"You okay?"

She sniffed the air again. "That smells good."

The boy chuckled nervously. "The pizza? Yeah, it does."

His heart beat was racing. She advanced more.

"You seem nervous of me," she said.

A part of her was screaming: _What are you doing? _

She ignored the voice, laughing as she came even closer. "Am I making you nervous?"

"Sorry, I have some pizzas to deliver."

The boy tried to move past her but she stretched out a hand, placing her palm against the wall. She placed her other hand on the other side of him, trapping him. He was taller than her and she had to stare up at him. The height difference would have looked ridiculous to a passer-by. A tall, stocky boy being trapped between the arms of a short, petite girl but if they came to have a closer look, they would have seen why the boy had managed to get himself in that situation. Bonnie's eyes were gleaming with mischief and hunger. She was casting her eyes all over him as if she wanted to devour him right there. Strange, growling noises were rumbling in her throat. She met his eyes again and her usual green colour changed to yellow.

"You don't have to be scared," she said. Her words echoed in his mind as he continued to stare deep into those unnatural but beautiful amber eyes. His body relaxed and she smiled.

"That's it. Just relax." She traced a hand down his cheek, stroking the skin with her thumb. Her hand trailed down to his neck where she suddenly grabbed at his throat. His body tensed up again. The heart thumped wildly against his chest. That scent became richer.

"No," she snapped. "I said relax. Just look here." She pointed to her eyes and he automatically followed where she was pointing. "That's it."

She took another deep breath in through her nose and her face tingled. Her teeth ached. There was a crunching of bones as they shifted. She felt her cheekbones sharpen, her forehead protrude. Her lower lip stung as two sharp points pricked at them. She was aware of footsteps behind her and a hand on her shoulder.

"That's my girl," Marko whispered. "Go on. Feed off him."

The boy was looking blankly into the distance and she dropped him to the floor, crouching down to bite into that neck. Her eyes were on a vein, the first one she noticed, on his shoulder. Marko was still muttering words of encouragement. Daring her to drink.

When her stomach whined and cramped, she groaned. A snarl escaped and she lunged forward, biting deep into the boy's shoulder. Blood filled her mouth, trickling down her throat and immediately settling the pain in her stomach. She sat back, blood dripping from her chin and gasping at the energy that shot through her.

She licked her lips and stared back at the puncture wounds she had made. Blood was welling up from them and she wanted to taste it again. She wanted more energy; less aching in her stomach. She wanted the life in this boy to be hers only.

Bonnie leaned forward, ready to keep on drinking when she stopped, catching something in the reflection of the boy's car.

She was hazy but she could see how demonic she looked in her fading reflection. Her eyes shone with their own light, bright and yellow. Wide and wild. Her lips were curled back from her teeth, baring sharp fangs that were stained in blood as was her mouth and chin. Her face had taken on more of an angled look with high, sharp cheekbones and a lumpy forehead that almost hooded her eyes.

_That's not me, _she thought.

The reflection mimicked her sudden shocked expression. Bonnie cried out in surprise, watching her face shift back into a human form and she jumped back, standing up and almost crashing into Marko. He took her by the shoulders, steadying her as she began to hyperventilate.

"Whoa, calm down. What happened?"

"Look at me!" she cried, trying to pry herself out of his grip. "Look at what I've done!"

"You're hungry. We need to do this," Marko said. "This is how we survive."

She was shaking her head wildly. "No! No, I can't do this. It's too soon! Marko, I nearly killed someone!"

"Stop shouting! Someone's going to hear us," Marko hissed and his grip on her shoulders tightened. "You've almost made your first kill. Keep going! You're just scared. There's still a lot of human in you but that'll go as soon as you kill him. You'll feel better."

She was shaking in his grip. "Please don't make me do this!"

"You can't avoid it forever."

"I'm not ready!"

The boy was groaning on the ground and Marko glared down at him. He glanced back at Bonnie with annoyance and let her go to reach for the boy.

"What are you doing?" she asked.

"Can't leave him like this," he said, changing his face. He growled and tore into the boy's throat. Bonnie covered her mouth, backing up quickly until her back hit the wall. She wanted to look away but she couldn't. Her eyes were on the feral vampire who was eagerly ripping into the skin and guzzling down the blood that spilled out. She had that urge again. That urge to take that blood for herself and she almost ran back to join in.

Marko let the boy drop back down to the floor when he released him and his head tilted back with a sigh. He looked in Bonnie's direction who froze at his stare. When he came marching towards her, her hands instinctively rose up to shield herself and she flinched but he stood there, gazing at her calmly.

Then he laughed. "What do you think I'm going to do to you?" He scooped her forward so she ended up on her tiptoes, arms sliding underneath hers and he leaned forward. His blood stained mouth covered hers and she almost threw up in his face.

_Ew! Disgusting! This is disgusting!_

She kept her pretence and kissed him back. Yet while her mind was shrieking about how sick this was, kissing a vampire covered in human blood, she was also being reminded of how delicious that boy's blood had tasted and she was wanting more again. So much she was suddenly aware of herself growling again in hunger as she kissed Marko. Shocked, she abruptly pulled away.

"I know you were enjoying that feed to begin with," Marko pointed out with a smirk on his face. "You loved the taste of his blood."

"It tasted amazing," she admitted, licking at her lips.

"Maybe knowing how it tastes now will help you next time," he said, letting her go and going over to the boy. He towered over the lifeless body before he bent down and ripped the head clean off the body with one, sharp twist.

"Is that necessary?" she asked.

"Need to make sure it looks like anything but a vampire attack."

"I thought nobody believed in vampires."

"But if you came across a body with puncture marks and loss of blood, what conclusion would you make?"

He opened the car door and grabbed the three large pizza boxes.

"We need to make sure there's no blood on us," he said. "Michael doesn't know about us yet."

"I think I might need to go home," Bonnie mumbled.

"You've just tasted blood. If you go back home and you smell their blood you might not be able to control yourself. Come back to cave and stay for the night."

"What will David say?" Bonnie asked, hugging her arms tightly to her chest.

"You're not the first to hesitate," he said, passing her one of the boxes. "But you need to do it. I will force feed you if I have to."

_I don't doubt that you will, _she thought, taking the box. Where was that goddamn cure?

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><p>Bonnie tried to avoid David's glaring eyes when they returned. Marko was already at his side, whispering how she close was, despite backing out. Now and again they both kept glancing at her while she sat on the sofa, too busy eavesdropping on their conversation to listen to one of Paul's stories.<p>

"She should have done it tonight."

"She's taken a step further than Star has ever done."

"We need everyone turned."

Marko folded his arms. "How's Star working out? How long has she been a half?"

"Star is a different case. We all know where she's heading."

Bonnie glanced at Star who had frozen on the spot as she put her needle away in a tin. She didn't turn to the boys but Bonnie could see her lips trembling and eyes widening. She was biting at her lower lip as a tear trickled out from the corner of her eye.

Seriously? They were seriously discussing Star's fate knowing she had the hearing to pick up their conversation?

"It's not different. They're both half and they both need to turn," Marko said. "It's not one rule for Bonnie and another for Star. We always knew Star would never join us properly once she found out. She's not up for this. You should have been done with her the first night you saw her."

If Bonnie wasn't keeping up this act she would have run over to the shaking girl and wrap her arms around her. She would have marched up to David and Marko and shouted and screamed at them for the way they were talking about her.

She caught David's eye who had a cruel smirk on his face.

"And you think Bonnie's turning because she wants to?"

Marko shrugged, his jaw clenching.

"You're warning me to be careful but you need to be as well." David stared straight at her. "She's not loyal."

"I'm guessing you haven't been human for quite a while, David," Bonnie said, standing up. "Don't judge me because of my feelings and how they're making me act. You want me to feed? I'll do it. Maybe it'll take a while to finally give in; maybe not. But the least you can do is give me a chance after you forced this decision on me. It's the least all of you can do." Her eyes flickered to Marko who could only reply back with a smirk on his face. Well, what other reaction could she expect? He wouldn't be able to sympathise. Feel guilt.

She didn't smirk back. Instead she glared at David again who laughed at her anger and beckoned for Paul who stood up.

"And don't judge me if my first priority is to look after my pack," David said, still smirking. He nodded to Paul and Marko. "Boys, we need to show Michael some fun at the train tracks. Shall we?"

The three of them left to return to Dwayne and Michael who had been standing outside on the cliff, smoking more joints when Marko and Bonnie returned with pizza. As David led the way back out Marko took one last glance at Bonnie who had collapsed back on the sofa again and was digging into another pizza slice. She tried to make it look like she was too busy enjoying eating.

She focused her hearing, listening to the sound of whooping boys and the roar of engines that soon began to fade away. All that was left was the violent swoosh of waves from the rocky sea and she dumped the half bitten pizza slice back in the box. The oozing tomato sauce was reminded her of something else that was equally appetizing and that boy flashed into her mind again.

"What happened?" Star asked.

"I almost did it," Bonnie whispered. She put her head in her hands. "Star, I almost made that kill. I started drinking."

An arm was around her in seconds and Bonnie leaned into Star who was stroking the back of her head.

"I couldn't help it. I tried to resist but the smell was so strong and something took over me completely!" She sniffed, feeling her nose prickle and eyes water. She felt tears drip onto her cheeks, wetting her skin as it trailed downwards.

"The way they were talking about you…" Bonnie mumbled, shaking her head.

"It's not the first time. I know what they think about me. I know every night I'm closer to being thrown away like an unwanted toy." Star sighed and sat back on the sofa. "I'm worried about Michael. He follows them all around. I'm worried he'll end up turning."

"You really like him," Bonnie stated.

"I like how he's pursued me," Star smiled. "I did all the chasing with David. As soon as I saw him I wanted him. But he doesn't feel the same. Michael does though. It's nice to feel wanted."

"Marko's done nothing but fight for me. I don't get it. He's a vampire. He's not supposed to care."

"I think it's an interest with vampires."

"That's what he said once. Some humans are too interesting to be a meal." She groaned and went back to holding her head in her hands. "I wish I never started noticing him in the first place. Look what I've ended up turning into!"

"You stopped though," Star said. "You could have gone all the way and killed that boy but you stopped yourself."

"Only because I saw my reflection. I've gone another step further and it's made my hunger worse. I can still taste the blood."

Bonnie shifted on the sofa so her feet were tucked under her legs. "Marko said I can stay here tonight. It's the last place I want to be but I can't trust myself anywhere else."

"Then take that offer if it keeps you from taking that next step. Don't put yourself into a position where you'll let the hunger take over again."

Star stood up, moving to her bed where Laddie was already falling asleep. She took a purple blanket off and came back over to Bonnie where she draped the thick material over her and she snuggled up immediately.

"Thanks," Bonnie said.

She moved so she was lying straight, letting her head sink into the dusty seat. Tears were still falling from her eyes and the memories of attacking that poor boy still rolled around in her head on repeat.

She shut her eyes, hoping sleep could take her and make her forget, even if it would be temporary.

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><p><strong>Thank you for reading. :) I may have a little problem with updating this coming week because I'm away next weekend and I haven't been given the greatest of news recently. Something's happened that's taking up a lot of my attention. If I can squeeze in an update, I will do my best but I don't want to promise anything and let readers down in the process. If you can be patient, that will be incredibly helpful while I deal with things. Really sorry I can't schedule an update this week but whatever happens I can at least promise I'm not disappearing for good. <strong>


	15. Chapter 15

**Thank you to CastleRockGirl and Freax for your reviews and big thanks to those who read the last chapter. :)**

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><p>With the sun stinging her eyes and snatching away her energy, Bonnie trudged through the quiet Boardwalk. It was barely alive and busy but she still managed to bump unsteadily into people, at first with a mumble of apology but when it happened the sixth time she recoiled away and bared her teeth to hiss at the person.<p>

"Oh my god!" She put a hand to her mouth as soon as she made that unnatural sound. "I'm sorry!"

The woman she had walked into widened her eyes, clutching at her bag before marching off at a fast pace. Bonnie simply hung her head and continued on, keeping her arms folded tightly against her chest. Every time someone walked past she was flinching away.

She had woken up in the cave with a burning thirst. The boys and Michael were nowhere to be seen. Star and Laddie were asleep in their little corner. Bonnie had wanted to remain curled up on the sofa but once she had taken in her surroundings, she had raced out. Now she found herself at the Boardwalk with blood everywhere she turned and wandered aimlessly with no actual place in mind to go. She thought about phoning her parents but what if her mother demanded for her to return home? Every single person's heartbeat pounded in her ears and the different smells of equally mouth-watering blood made her stomach ache. What if she attacked her own parents?

She leaned against the railings, letting her hair fall in front of her face. What a stupid idea this had been. Parts of her were slowly dying to be replaced with evil and in the end it had all been down to her. Not the boys.

The tears she had been holding back were finally released. She was supposed to be able to use this as a defence. To fight back against creatures she wouldn't be able to stand up to as a human.

She was supposed to have found a cure by now.

_I can't do this, _she thought.

Her stomach cramped again and she almost collapsed to the ground in pain. She gripped onto the railings, feeling the metal squash underneath her grip and she let go, eyes wide at the dent she had made.

"Shit," she whispered and backed away, heading back in to the crowds and wandering until she had come to the small shops. In front of her was the comic store, open and empty of customers. She saw Edgar and Alan at the counter, facing away from the entrance as they hunched up and huddled close together. Bonnie bit her lip, taking a reluctant step forward.

_Would they help me? _

She kept her steps wary as she inched closer and closer to the shop entrance. They had their backs to her, even when she walked in and stood near them, opening and closing her mouth as words failed her.

Eventually she sighed and said, "I need your help."

At the sound of her voice, the brothers whirled around. Edgar reached an arm out, pushing Alan backwards. His eyes were cold as he glared at her.

"Stay right there," he warned. "Don't come any closer."

She frowned. "What –?"

"We know who you've been with," Alan snapped. His face was twisted with pure disgust.

"You know…?"

"You've been with those vampires," Edgar said, through gritted teeth.

She was frozen. "How do you know?"

"It doesn't matter," Alan said, scowling. "You know what they are too and you've been with them."

Bonnie sighed. "You don't understand. Can you listen to me?"

"You need to start being honest now," Edgar snapped. He glanced back at the back room where Uncle Gerry was collecting a delivery. With his voice low, he stared daggers at Bonnie. "Are you one of them?"

Her eyes flickered to and from each brother. Edgar looked ready to turn red and explode. She could see his shoulders trembling from anger. Alan's expression was the worst. She had seen that look on his face plenty of times before and it was always directed to his parents. It was anger, betrayal and disgust mixed together.

She bit her lip and slowly nodded.

Alan's voice was quiet. "How could you?"

"It's not what it looks like. Edgar!" She stepped forward when he pushed Alan backwards and they both raced around the counter, putting a barrier between them and Bonnie.

"You need to listen to me. I'm not like them completely."

"A vampire is a vampire," Edgar said. He dived into his bag and pulled out a cross. Bonnie backed away from the counter, feeling that force drive her away. Her instinct could tell something bad would happen if she got any closer. It almost had her curling up in a ball and bawling right there in the middle of the shop. There was still human in her. How on earth could she already be affected by crosses?

"Please, I need your help. I don't want to be like this," Bonnie begged.

"It's a trick," Edgar whispered to Alan. Bonnie growled and slammed her fist on the counter, making them both jump on the spot.

"It's not a trick! Will you freaking listen to me? I need your help. I need a cure!"

"Edgar, she's in the daylight," Alan whispered, nodding to outside where the sun shone.

"Did they force you to drink blood?" Edgar asked, ignoring his brother.

"Blood?"

"You need to drink vampire blood to become like them. Did they force you?"

"Well…" Bonnie frowned. "Yes."

"You're lying," Edgar growled.

"No! I mean, I thought if I became like this I could stop them."

Edgar's eyes widened. "So you chose to turn yourself into this?"

"It's not like that."

"Alan, get a stake," Edgar ordered. Obediently, his brother reached into his bag and pulled out a wooden stake. Bonnie started to back away, her mouth parted in shock.

"You won't kill me," she said.

"You've willingly turned yourself into a bloodsucker. I don't believe you!" Edgar argued. "You've gone to them out of your own free will. What else am I supposed to think?"

"They were going to kill me!"

"Then you should have come to us," Alan said.

"I'm here now. Doesn't that mean anything?"

Alan sighed and raised the stake. "You chose them. That's what it looks like."

"Alan," Bonnie whispered. "Please. Help me."

He glanced at his brother once and shook his head. "I can't believe you let that vampire get to you."

She scowled at him, feeling a rumble in her throat. "And I can't believe you wouldn't help your best friend."

She turned on her heel, racing out of the store and hearing Edgar yell at Alan to start running after her. She dodged her way gracefully around people, building up an unnatural speed as she darted through the Boardwalk. She reached the car park, stopping to look back but there was no sign of a screaming Edgar and Alan. She wasn't sure when she lost them but they were definitely nowhere in sight.

She leaned against a lamppost, swearing under her breath and clenching her fists. How fucking dare they? The way they looked at her! Talked to her! Like she was a piece of filth! She had turned to them for help and they treated her like the enemy, not even listening to her pleas. Their minds had been made up from the minute she admitted everything.

_You knew it though, _she thought. _You expected it._

It would have still been nice to be proven wrong. That their friendship meant something.

* * *

><p>"She moves fast," Edgar muttered, coming back into the store. Uncle Gerry was waiting for them at the counter, arms folded and eyebrow raised.<p>

"I really hope you two weren't chasing those teenagers again."

The both of them shrugged and Gerry sighed. "I'd rather have comics stolen than see you two stabbed to death in the street." He slammed the clipboard shut. "I'll be back in five. Stay here until I get back. No chasing after those teenagers. When I get back, you boys can go for something to eat."

They didn't say anything as Gerry left the shop and they took over around the counter. They both took the stake out and cross they were hiding underneath their jackets, dumping them back into their bags. Edgar looked at his brother who leaned against the counter, staring down quietly.

"Are you okay?" he asked.

Alan nodded and Edgar came closer. He knew that expression and posture all too well. When Alan folded his arms, standing hunched against something and looking down with his eyebrows knitted together, he was upset. He had seen that post many times when it came to the other kids at school and their parents.

"Say something, bro," he said.

"I want to kill Marko," Alan whispered and Edgar saw his fists clench. "I want all of them dead."

"Even Bonnie?"

Alan stiffened. "You really don't think she's been forced into this?"

"She admitted it. Marko's had her hooked from day one. I think that's it. She's gone."

Alan nodded slowly, despite the repeating image of her pleading for help. Curiosity made him think: was there really a chance for half vampires? He had never come across a cure, not even in those horror comics. But while he thought about the possibility of helping Bonnie, he had to nod along to his brother's words. It was best to avoid a lecture.

"If I have to, I'll do it," he said.

* * *

><p><strong>Thank you for reading and please feel free to leave a review. Things are still a little bit chaotic personally but I will manage an update on Monday.<strong>


	16. Chapter 16

**Realised tomorrow I will have absolutely no time to post so I'll get this done now. Thank you to Elle, PoisonBones and CastleRockGirl for your reviews. :) Big thanks as well to everyone who took the time to read the last chapter and favourited/followed.  
><strong>

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><p>It was the only place she felt she could go. Edgar and Alan wouldn't know where this was. Marko and the gang wouldn't have a clue. None of them had ever been here before.<p>

She knocked on the front door, breathing in and out slowly to calm her instincts as footsteps came closer to the door. She tensed up, preparing herself for the fresh smell of blood and bit her lip when the door opened. For a second, Bernice stared in confusion before her eyes widened.

"Have you been crying?" she asked.

"I'm sorry," Bonnie said, as her voice began to crack. "I don't know where else to go."

"What's happened?"

Her friend's lips trembled and she let out a whimper as more tears appeared, squeezing out from the corner of her eyes but backed up when Bernice opened her arms and started to step towards her.

"No. Don't hug me. I know that sounds weird but please, not at the moment."

"What's going on, Bonnie?" Bernice asked as her friend slipped past her and collapsed on the bottom of the stairs, letting her head drop in her hands.

"If I tell you everything you'll be in danger. I'm in trouble and need somewhere to stay for a bit. That's all you need to know."

"The fuck it is!" Bernice snapped as she closed the door and marched over. She knelt down in front of Bonnie, glaring at her. "Tell me. Is it something to do with Marko?"

Bonnie nodded. She bit her lip again, desperate for the words to spill out. To blurt out everything that was happening to her, just so someone else knew. Well, Edgar and Alan knew but someone who could still be there for her. The Frog brothers couldn't be that. From the look of disgust in their eyes, she knew what she was to them and it didn't matter that half of her was still human.

The way they had talked to her had made her feel sick in her stomach.

Bernice took her friend's shaking hands. "What's happened with Marko?"

When Bonnie didn't answer, Bernice tightened her grip. "You _need_ to tell me."

"But what if it could kill you if you knew?"

Bernice blinked. Her eyes widened. But Bonnie gazed at her friend solemnly, patiently waiting for an answer.

"It's not worth the risk. Can't you just trust me and let me stay here for a little while?" Bonnie asked.

"And then what?"

Bonnie shrugged. "I don't know. I might have to go away for a while until I figure things out."

"You're not running away."

"I don't know what else to do."

"Tell _me_," Bernice insisted. "Whatever it is, you sound like you're running out of options. But you don't have to. I'll help."

"I'm scared of what they'll do."

"I don't care," Bernice said with a shake of her head. "You're my best friend. No-one hurts you. Not Marko or that scum-bag gang of his."

"It's…" Bonnie paused, frowning as she tried to phrase her words together the best way possible. "This is going to be scary. Just try and remember I'm not going to do anything."

Bernice frowned but stayed knelt on the floor. "You're already scaring me."

"I'm sorry," Bonnie said. "Are you ready?"

Bernice straightened up, nodding stiffly and clenching her jaw together. Her skin prickled, goosebumps rising on her arms and hairs stood up on the back of her neck. Her stomach churned and her mind dreaded the words that were going to come out of Bonnie's mouth. What on earth could be so scary?

Bonnie took a deep breath in and she felt that too familiar tingling across her face. The bones shifted uncomfortably and as soon as they did she saw her friend's face twist in horror. Her mouth opened in a silent scream and she backed away, feet kicking at the floor as she scrambled away, hitting the door to her living room.

"Please don't scream or anything. Just listen to me," Bonnie urged and Bernice caught the flash of fangs. She shrieked.

"Oh my god – what the fuck, Bonnie? _What the fuck_? You're a – oh my god!" Bernice jumped up, hands flying to her mouth. "_What the fuck_?"

"I can go if you want me to."

Bernice glanced at Bonnie who had changed her face back and looked like the freckled best friend she had always known. The yellow eyes had reverted back to her usual green and those sharp, hideous cheekbones and bumps had disappeared, softening her features.

Bernice's voice was a whisper. "What the hell happened to you?"

"Marko."

"He's turned you into a vampire?"

"Kinda," Bonnie said and sighed, folding her arms tightly against her chest. "I'm in so much trouble."

When Bonnie's voice cracked, Bernice's expression crumpled into sympathy. Her friend was crying again and Bernice wanted to go and run to throw her arms around her, assuring her everything was going to be okay. But Bonnie had warned her not to touch her and she had a good idea why. She was something else now. Was that irreversible?

"Can you be cured?"

Bonnie shrugged. "I don't know. I'm only half at the moment. I have to kill someone to turn fully. But I've been trying to find a cure and none of the books mention anything. Bernie, I don't know what to do. I'm so close to killing somebody. I can't help it. It's like this need and it's growing stronger. And if I don't kill I'll either starve to death or Marko's gang will kill me. If they don't think I can be trusted, I'm screwed."

"Did you let them turn you or did he suddenly bite you one night?"

"I let them. I didn't get bitten. I had to drink vampire blood to become like this."

"Why did you let them?"

"They'd kill me if I stayed human. Fucking Marko. He took an interest in me, like a vampire interest."

"To turn you?"

Bonnie nodded. "I found out what he was and then I was left with a choice. I could either turn or they'd kill me because humans aren't allowed to know."

Bernice sneered. "What choice?"

"Tell me about it. He put me into this situation. I thought if I turned, become half at least, it would help me kill them. I can't fight them as a human." When she noticed Bernice's shaking hands, she nodded at them. "Are you okay?"

"Not really," Bernice said with a trembling laugh. "I mean, here I was worried he was abusing you, getting you into drugs or getting you knocked up and then… you show me this… and you're a vampire and that means vampires are real… oh my god." She started pacing back and forth.

"Do you want me to go?"

"What? No! No… I…" She sighed, dropping her arms and turned to face her friend squarely. "Don't go. I'm going to help you."

Bonnie gave her a weak smile. Now and again, little tears still dripped down her cheeks and she shifted so she huddled her knees as she brought them up to her chest. Bernice came and sat down in the hallway, a few feet away from her friend.

"You know how Edgar and Alan talk about vampires all the time? Do they know?"

"They know about me. They won't help."

Bernice frowned. "Why not?"

"They're vampire hunters. I'm a vampire."

"Half," Bernice corrected her.

Bonnie shrugged weakly. "Doesn't matter."

She watched her friend's jaw clench. "I'll be having words."

"Don't go to them. I came here because Marko, Edgar, and Alan don't know this place. I'm hiding from them. If you're okay with that."

Bernice nodded. "You can stay in my room. I'll come up with a lie for Bridget so she won't go ranting. And we'll search for a cure. Do you have any books at home?"

"Some but they're rubbish. I'd go with comics."

"Seriously?"

Bonnie chuckled. "I know, right? I need the 411 on vampires and the most reliable information I have are freaking comics."

"Okay, here's the plan. I'll go to your house and get the comics and any books you have."

"You sure?"

Bernice smiled and reached to take her friend's shoulders although Bonnie noticed she hesitated for a split second.

"I'm finding you a cure," she said.

* * *

><p>Bonnie stared at her transparent reflection, wiping away the condensation that had gathered on the bathroom mirror. The shower hissed frantically as warm water spilled from it, steaming up the room. There was a yellow light in her eyes, amber mixing in with her usual green and she took deep breaths, trying to calm her emotions down. Downstairs she heard the door slam and Bernice shout out to Bonnie she was back.<p>

"I won't be long," Bonnie called back and let her towel drop to the tiled floor. After sleeping in a filthy, damp cave that stank of weed, alcohol and something rotting as well as feeling like she had been transferred into someone else's body, she sighed as she felt the warmth from the water radiate and tickle her skin. She stretched her hand out to test the temperature and as soon as her fingers made contact with the water she yelped and snapped her hand back. Her burning hand felt like she had stuck it straight into flames. When she held it up, her skin was red and blistered.

"What the hell?"

She grabbed the towel, carefully wrapping it around her with one hand and holding the towel in place as she wandered into Bernice's room.

"I burnt myself," she said to Bernice who dumped a pile of books and comics onto her bed plus a change of clothes. She looked up, frowning.

"Don't make it too hot," she said and cringed at the shiny scald. "Put it under the cold tap."

She guided Bonnie back into the bathroom, gently holding her wrist as she turned on the tap and cool water gushed out. Her friend screamed, trying to jerk out of Bernice's grip.

"You need to get cool water on it."

"It's burning me!" Bonnie snapped, crying out in pain. Bernice glanced at Bonnie's hand where more skin had blistered but when she went to get a closer look Bonnie hissed her at her. Her lips curled back from her teeth and she actually sounded like a threatened snake.

"Hey," Bernice said, putting her hands up in the air. "I only wanted to look. I'm trying to help you."

She stared Bonnie right in the eyes, trying not to show any fear at the glowing, yellow colour.

"Bonnie, calm down."

Her friend's chest heaved up and down rapidly as she continued to glare with her lips pulled back. But slowly, her breathing calmed down. Her short, angry huffs fading away. She straightened up, losing the tension in her shoulders and legs.

"I'm sorry," Bonnie mumbled.

Bernice picked at a loose thread on her t-shirt. "It's okay," she muttered back.

"It all feels like it's burning me."

Bernice turned off the sink tap and went to the shower where she stuck her hand under it. The water was warm but not hot enough to burn and she shook her head at Bonnie.

"It's fine."

"_What_?" Bonnie hung her head. She wandered back into Bernice's room, digging into the bag her friend had brought her and pulled out her pyjamas.

"So I can't touch water? I thought it was just Holy water that was out of the question."

Bernice picked up a comic and flicked though it. She paused on one page. "This one has a character who's half and the same thing happened."

She held it up for Bonnie to see who read it carefully. The boy had gone to wash his hands and scorched them as soon as he made contact with the tap.

"I'm sure Edgar and Alan have told me about vampires and running water before," Bonnie said. "That they can't cross or touch it. One or the other, or maybe both." She sighed, throwing her head back.

"Are you okay?" Bernice asked.

Bonnie's lips quivered. "No, I'm not okay. I can't touch running water, crosses can actually drive me away and all I want to do is rip someone's throat out!" She plopped down on Bernice's bed, letting tears drip down her cheeks and she shook with every loud sob she made.

"I almost fed last night!" Bonnie wailed in between sobs. "I started to drink someone's blood and I was so close to turning completely. If I had kept going…" She hiccupped. "I would have… actually…"

Bonnie's shoulders were shaking violently when Bernice sat down next to her friend and wrapped her arms around her. Their foreheads touched and they sat there in silence until Bonnie's loud cries slowly began to settle down. Bernice reached up and stroked her friend's hair with her hand.

"There are so many things about me that aren't human anymore," Bonnie whispered. "I feel closer to being one of them than a human being and I'm worried that means I'll go too far."

"You're not," Bernice whispered back. "Because you've got me, now. You're not doing this by yourself."

Downstairs, the door slammed and Bridget's singing voice echoed upstairs. "It's ooooonly meeeee!"

"Don't tell her," Bonnie said quickly.

"Bon, maybe you need as much help as you can."

"It's another life I'm risking. And knowing Bridget, she is not going to be able to handle this well."

Bridget knocked on Bernice's door, turning the handle before her sister could invite her in.

"Well, I've handed in about ten job applications so fingers crossed –." Her eyes hardened the minute she saw Bonnie and cleared her throat. "Hi," she said with an icy tone to her voice.

"Hey," Bonnie said.

"What are you doing here?"

"Before you start with the lectures, she needs her friends," Bernice said.

"Is this Marko again?" Bridget asked, her judging eyes moving straight to Bonnie who gave a brief nod. "It was a stupid move, running back to him."

"You're judging," Bernice said, sighing when she looked at her sister.

"I've messed up with Marko. Believe me," Bonnie said and she quickly exchanged a look with Bernice who bit her lip. "I really need you guys at the moment. Please? Do you know if this was you, I would be there no matter what stupid thing you'd done?"

Bridget averted her eyes and Bonnie noticed her hard, jaw clenched expression was softening.

"She's staying here for a bit. She's trying to hide from Marko," Bernice said.

"It's that bad?" Bridget asked, cringing, and Bonnie nodded again.

"Okay. You brought it on yourself but okay."

"Translation: I'm sorry and you're my best friend and I love you forever," Bernice said, grinning at Bridget who looked away with a small smirk tugging on her lips, desperate to properly form.

"Is Marko able to find you here?" Bridget asked Bonnie who shrugged.

"He shouldn't. He doesn't know where you live but I'm not promising anything."

Beside her, she noticed Bernice tensed up and she grabbed her hand to give it a squeeze.

"Sorry," Bonnie said.

"Don't be," Bridget said and finally let her smirk creep up on her face. "If he comes here, I'll introduce him to my fist." Her eyebrows quirked up and she turned on her heel to leave the room, closing the door behind her and Bonnie took in a deep breath.

"Do you know what? I think Marko would actually be in trouble if he came across her," Bernice said and Bonnie barked out a laugh, snorting once.

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><p><strong>Thank you for reading. :) If you'd like to leave a comment or a review, please feel free to. I can get back to regular updating now so it's back to Saturday updates. See you all next week! ^^<strong>


	17. Chapter 17

**Thank you to the reviewers for taking the time to comment. Glad you all enjoyed the last chapter and also thank you to everyone who read and favourited/followed. :)  
><strong>

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><p>Edgar slammed the phone down, looking at his brother. Alan shook his head, backing away from the counter. Neither of them had to speak to know how they both felt about the information that new boy Sam had just shared with them. It was terrifying in one sense that there was now another vampire running around Santa Carla on top of Bonnie and that pack she was involved in. It was also worrying how stupid Sam was acting by refusing to put a stake through his brother's heart. After warning the boy, Edgar had had enough of the phone call, not wanting to hear more arguments from the fashion victim. It was quite clear he was not prepared to deal with his bloodsucking brother, even after almost being attacked in the bath by him.<p>

"That's two of them then. Michael and Bonnie," Edgar said.

"Think this is an invasion?" Alan asked.

"I think if vampires wanted to take over the world they would have done so already; years ago even. This gang try and hide their kills so they don't want to be discovered."

"So why turn two civilians and add to the pack? We've seen at least six different vampires in that gang. Four guys, one kid, and that curly haired girl. Initiating two more people will make the pack way too big to handle."

"Sickening show of affection," Edgar muttered, his lips curling in disgust. "I guess if they like someone, they'll turn them."

"Vampires?" Mrs Frog mumbled and glanced up, looking around the store. She peered over her glasses, dazed as she stared at her sons.

"It's alright, Mom. Go back to sleep," Edgar said with a rare, gentle voice that was never directed to anyone else, possible supernaturals or human beings. Alan glanced at his brother, an eyebrow quirking up and wondered how on earth Edgar actually managed to be so nice to his parents when he was grumpy and stoic to other people. If anyone deserved the Frog hostility it was their parents, in Alan's mind.

"Alan?"

Alan sighed when his mother called his name and folded his arms. He didn't turn his attention onto her and didn't even care to use the same gentle tone as his brother. In comparison to Edgar, his tone was just as monotonous and clipped as it was when he spoke to people in general.

"Everything's fine," he said.

"Don't play with vampires," she muttered and her head fell back, knocking the wall slightly. Alan shut his eyes briefly, giving a quick shake of his head before glancing at Edgar.

"What's the plan?" Alan asked, stepping near to his brother and leaned on the counter. "Bonnie and Michael are weak at the moment. They'll want to make their first kill soon and we could do something about that."

"You heard Sam on the phone. He won't kill his brother and if we turned up with stakes and Holy water he'd put up a fight. Well…" Edgar got a brief flash of this new kid in his head, all colours and patterns and hair that looked carefully styled. "Maybe not fight but he won't let us anywhere near Michael."

"And Bonnie?"

"I checked her house during lunch. She's not there. I don't know where she could have gone. If these vampires have a hideout, we don't know where that is." Edgar shook his head. "We should never have lost her."

"She was fast," Alan said. "We were never going to match her speed."

"Still a failure. We've let a vampire go free. Who knows what she's doing right now or who she's killing?"

Alan swallowed. His stomach churned at the thought of his friend biting into the throat of an innocent civilian. "You think she could be doing that?"

"She's a vampire. What else would she be doing?"

"She kept saying she wanted help when she came into the store earlier. You saw her, she was out in daylight and vampires only come out at night. She's not one of them completely."

"A vampire is a vampire, Alan. I don't think there's any way to cure Bonnie and Michael. That's it, they're gone. They've been gone for a while now."

Alan nodded, lowering his head and he slumped against the counter.

"We should have done more when she first started seeing Marko," he said to Edgar who nodded.

"Maybe. But she wasn't listening to us."

Alan felt his fists clench. "If we ever find out where these vampires hide away, Marko is the first night crawler I am going to stake in the heart." He glanced out into the crowded boardwalk, looking out for a flash of that colourful jacket and cruel, smirking face. Maybe he could stake him tonight…

"Hey," Edgar said, snapping his fingers in front of his brother's face. "Don't look for him. Don't let them find out we know for sure what they are otherwise we really are in trouble."

"Bonnie's told him we already know," Alan said.

"And if he thought we were definitely a threat, Marko and that gang would have attacked us by now. They're underestimating us. Probably think we're a couple of conspiracy mad kids, accusing anyone and everyone."

Alan scoffed. "Twisted Sister's forgotten our little encounter?"

"I have a feeling we're not on their priority list so use to it our advantage. If they think we're silly, little boys they won't be expecting us to track them down and kill them. I think we could do with the element of surprise," Edgar said and then he flashed a rare smile as he took hold of his brother's shoulders, shaking him slightly. "This could be it, Al. Our first proper vampire hunt and kill. We've got the bastards."

* * *

><p>"Mom?" Sam asked, fastening the belt of his dressing gown. "Are you staying up a bit longer?"<p>

"Just a bit longer," she said, continuing to read her book.

"Mind if I get a few comics to read?"

"As long as it's not those horror comics. You're not scaring yourself again," she said.

_I wish it was just the comics scaring me, _he thought and got back up, peering out into the dark hallway. Downstairs, he heard Grandpa humming to himself as he crept back into the house and Sam sighed with relief, straightening up and walking back to his room.

"You're still up?" Grandpa asked from the living room below, peering over his glasses.

Sam gave a small smile. "You're creeping in at this hour?"

Grandpa gave a chuckle and took off his hat and coat, placing it on the coat hanger. He hummed again and danced to the kitchen.

"He sounds way too happy," Sam muttered to himself and shuddered. Outside, he heard the roar of a motorbike and when he peered into Michael's room on the way to his, there was no sign of his brother.

Part of him was actually quite glad Michael had gone out. After seeing his brother's reflection, realising in that horrifying second that vampires were real and his brother was one of them, he suddenly felt incredibly scared of his surroundings. That his brother was thirsting for blood and nearly killed him and there were more vampires out there. Hell, those vampires had actually come to the house earlier on their motorbikes, taunting and intimidating. Santa Carla was more than the Murder Capitol of the World. It was Vampire Town.

He gathered all the vampire comics he had been given by the Frog brothers and he shook his head at the sight of them, scoffing once in disbelief. Every trip to the comic store had ended with those weirdo brothers giving him a horror comic. The same warnings every time. Beware of vampires, call them if he needed help, call them if he spots a vampire…

_Guess they're not whack jobs, _Sam thought and went back to his mother's room who was still lying on her side, reading her book.

"Did I hear a motorcycle?" she asked.

"Yeah, I think Michael's gone out again," Sam said, lying down next to her and opening up one of the comics. He heard her sigh.

"Does he seem different to you?" she asked.

_Inhumanly._

"I've noticed, Mom. I think it's that gang he hangs out with. These four guys on bikes."

"I've seen them. They surrounded me the other night," she told him.

_They did what? _"Why didn't you say anything?"

"Oh, I didn't want to worry my boys," she said, reaching behind her to shake his arm gently. "But they weren't very nice and I'm worried if that's the gang Michael has been befriending. He's changed a lot since we've moved here. So distant. I dread the worst, you know."

"What's the worst, Mom?" he asked, although he knew whatever his mother was panicking over it wouldn't be as worse as the real trouble he knew his brother was in.

"Drugs," she told him.

"I don't think it's drugs. I think Michael just wants to fit in," he said.

Lucy sighed. "I don't know. I have this horrible feeling it's more than fitting in. I need to talk to him."

"That gang didn't hurt you, did they? The other night?"

She smiled at her son's concern. "No. Thankfully, they left when they saw Max arrive for his shift." Her smile quickly faded. "Oh, Max. I just left him at the restaurant, you know."

"Sorry, Mom."

"We're going to his house tomorrow to explain and apologise."

"I know."

"And I'm inviting him over for dinner."

"You really like him, don't you?" Sam asked.

"I do. But it doesn't mean I suddenly want you to see him as a father and have him move in with us. They're only meals and I'd like you and Michael to let me have the chance to do that."

Sam flicked through the pages of his comic. "Okay, Mom. I'm sorry."

_There's got to be something in here to help me, _Sam thought and stopped at one story in the comic. There was a boy staring into the mirror, his reflection transparent just like his brother's had been earlier. The boy's face was twisted in horror at the sight of what he was with a thought bubble coming out of his head. It read: 'They've turned me into a half-vampire!"

_Maybe this will help, _he wondered as he started to read the story.

* * *

><p>"Enough!" Max roared, throwing the vampire kite down onto the ground. The boys continued to cheer and whoop at him as he marched over to the bright lights of the motorcycles.<p>

"I said _enough_," Max repeated and all the lights suddenly turned off. He straightened, pressing his lips together again as he looked around for any sign of the four unruly vampires but they were nowhere to be seen.

"I know you're still out there," he called out. "I can sense you boys. Now, enough games."

David laughed from behind him. "You spoil all the fun, Max."

Max turned to see his eldest vampire leaning against his white fence with a smirk on his face. There was more laughter behind him and he peered back to see Paul, Marko, and Dwayne standing together, grinning mischievously too.

"I don't consider this fun," Max said, taking off his glasses. "All I see are four wild boys who are trying to cause too much trouble. All of you inside. Now."

"Sure thing, _Dad,_" Paul teased, mockingly saluting him. Max gestured to his door, ushering the four vampires inside. David took his usual place near the window and leaned against the large windowsill. Dwayne stood as well but Marko and Paul collapsed on Max's sofa who immediately cleared his throat the minute he saw Marko's feet rise up to rest on the table. With a grin, Marko put them back down on the floor and shared an amused glance with Paul.

Max placed his glasses in a case. "From the way Lucy has been talking about Michael recently, I assume you've been successful in his initiation?"

"He's half," David said.

"And when is he going to feed? We'll be needing to turn our attention to Lucy's youngest son soon."

His eldest vampire chuckled. "We're planning quite the feast."

"No," Max warned, pointing a finger. "No messing around. I need the two boys turned and Lucy as well."

"And the old man?"

"He's done the smart thing keeping out of any vampire business. But he can be disposed of as soon as we have his family. I've found a lovely town we can all move to, further up North. It's still in California but it's quite a way from Santa Carla. Wonderful local history. You'd like it very much, David. It's very fascinating."

David's eyebrow quirked up. "How considerate of you."

Max turned his attention to Marko with a smile. "How's Bonnie?"

David folded his arms. "Oh, do tell, Marko."

Marko's face was serious as Max's smile faded. "What's happened?"

"She's just got a little freaked out. She almost killed someone last night," Marko said with a shrug and shot David a glance.

"And now she's nowhere to be seen," David added.

"And this isn't worrying you at all?" Max asked, towering over the young vampire.

"Where is she going to go? She's not at home because she'll probably kill her parents. She won't tell her friends if she doesn't want to risk their lives and she definitely won't tell the Frog brothers. Those pipsqueaks wouldn't trust her. She has no-one," Marko explained.

"The girl isn't up to it," David said.

Marko scoffed. "Has Star even come close to feeding off someone?" When David didn't respond, Marko smirked. "No and Bonnie has. She went for the kill. She's more of a vampire than Star will ever be."

"She's still done a disappearance act," Max said. "You should be out there looking for her. Connect to her mind!"

"I'll give it a shot but while she's half it's not going to be easy."

"So you see the problem there," Max pointed out. "Don't let her stay half for too long. I don't like it when they mess around. It only tells me they're not loyal enough. Star and Laddie are already causing enough trouble but I've still allowed you to bring Bonnie into the fold. I'm putting my trust in you to push her into her first kill if she's more likely to turn than the others." He pointed to the door. "You have a job to do. Now."

Marko sighed but he stood up, scowling at Max as he marched past him and out of the house. Near the door Thorn growled at him, baring his teeth as he watched the vampire walk past.

"Bite me and I'll bite you," Marko snapped and closed his eyes. He pushed through all the links he could make. David, Max, Paul… every member of his undead family until he sensed another familiar connection. A very faint one that wasn't as strong as a full vampire's.

_Bonnie. _

That connection tingled, a brief response to his thoughts.

_I know you can hear me. Where are you? _

There was no answer and he pushed further, trying to get a sense of where she was. Her location was hazy. It was shelter. Walls… dark…

_Stop messing about, _he said mentally.

She was near. Still in Santa Carla but that was too vague. While it was a small town there were plenty of places she could have gone to or hidden away in. It would be daylight by the time he had searched all of them and he could already feel himself draining as the hours crept closer to sunrise.

_You can't hide forever, Bonnie._

He frowned as he heard a faint, distorted voice inside his head. Maybe he was hearing things but he was sure he heard her voice.

_Yes, I can._

He frowned. She was purposely hiding?

"She can't go through with this," David said, appearing beside him. "I don't think she planned on going all the way in the first place."

"Oh, really?"

"You scared her into a choice. From what I saw of that girl she was way too feisty to give in like that."

Marko gritted his teeth.

"You turned her against you the night you murdered two people in front of her. I've noticed how distant she acts with you. She was never going to come running back. It didn't make her understand, it only terrified her."

"I've noticed," Marko admitted. "But she's also so close to giving in to her hunger whether she wants to or not."

"Still," David said, patting him on the back. "You might have consider another option. Sorry, Marko."

"And what about Star and Laddie? You're not exactly pushing them into turning."

"Dwayne and Paul could probably convince the kid and I'll push them to sort it out. But we all know I never really intend on having Star around forever. That's the difference, Marko. I'm having fun for a while. But you want something a bit more permanent."

He wandered back into the house leaving Marko to swear out loud as he took out a cigarette and lit it.

_Shame, _he thought. _All that effort I put in and I'll probably have to get rid of her._


	18. Chapter 18

Bridget tapped on the side of the comic book store. "Knock, knock."

Sam and the Frog brothers stepped further away from each other, turning to face her as she beamed and walked in. Sam quickly hid his copy of Hounds of Hell behind his back and tried to force a smile on his face. It was an incredibly jumpy reaction considering all he was doing was figuring out a solution to help Michael but after finding out about vampires, he couldn't help this new edginess he had.

"We're not open," Edgar said.

"I've just seen you two open up."

"We're not open _yet_."

"We're only getting everything prepared," Alan said.

"Cool," she said and came to the counter, picking up a comic and flicking through it. She felt eyes on her and she glanced up to see Edgar's scowling face.

"Um… hi, there?"

"What are you doing?" he asked.

"Hanging out."

"You've never hung out with us before."

"You two dudes are actually okay. Weird but okay," she said, going back to the comic. "Much less complicated than girls."

"You're a girl," Alan pointed out, a slight smile on his face.

"I'm not complicated," she said with a grin. "So, what's new, Sam?"

"What?" Sam straightened, closing his comic.

"How are you finding Santa Carla?"

"Oh, it's, um –."

She leaned forward, her grin widening as she looked at Edgar and Alan. "Find any vampires yet?"

"No!" he answered, too quickly. "No vampires!"

"Okay, chill. I was messing around. You know, because these two think they're the Vampire Hunters of Santa Carla?" She gestured to the brothers who exchanged an uncomfortable glance between them.

Sam chuckled, a very high pitched sound. "It's cool."

"Hey, have you seen Bonnie around?" Alan asked Bridget. It was her turn to freeze and tense up at a question. Bernice had asked her this morning not to mention Bonnie's whereabouts to the Frog brothers. She never got a proper answer to her questions except that Bonnie didn't want either of them anywhere near her. She figured their falling out was still pretty bitter and Bonnie wasn't prepared to put up them after all the crap she was going through with Marko.

"No, I haven't," she said, unable to keep looking at him. Her eyes darted back to the comic.

"You're lying," Edgar said.

Bridget bit her lip. "I'm really not supposed to say."

"We need to see her. Talk to her about that dangerous biker gang," Alan said and glanced at Sam who frowned at first but after a while his eyebrows slowly raised up.

"Michael's biker gang?" he asked and the brothers nodded slowly.

"She's involved too like Michael," Edgar said and Sam's lips parted in a small 'o' shape before nodding.

"Look, I don't really know what's been going on but I'm not supposed to let you see her. Bonnie's my best friend and I need to respect her wishes. She doesn't want to see you guys."

"Is she at your house?" Edgar asked.

"No," she answered. Too quickly.

"Take us to your house."

"I'm not doing anything!" Bridget said.

"We want to help her," Alan said. "At least, we think we have a way of helping her. She'd want to hear this. You need to take us to her."

Bridget groaned, closing her eyes. "Oh, don't get me involved!"

"If you knew how much trouble she was in at the moment you'd want to be involved and helping her," Alan told her and while she frowned, wondering what on earth he could mean about her friend, she sighed and lightly shrugged in defeat.

"I'll be in a load of trouble, but fine, I'll take you to my house. You better be telling the truth about wanting to help her. If you're only trying to see her to cause a lot of shit you'll all be answering to me and I'm a whole lot scarier than Bonnie."

With the cold, stern glare in her eyes and the pointed finger than was aimed at the Frog brothers they wordlessly nodded. Bonnie may be a half-vampire who was faster, stronger, and bloodthirsty but when Bridget said she could be worse they actually believed her.

* * *

><p>Bonnie stayed huddled up underneath a large umbrella. Bernice had taken her outside with her dad's old punch bag. She had on his boxing gloves and danced around the bag as she gave little cries now and again, punching it with all her strength. Bonnie had taken one step outside before the bright sunshine began to sting at her skin and she had to dart away, her arms red from the brief contact. Bernice had managed to find a large umbrella for her friend to shelter under before going back to circling the punch bag, punching and kicking at it.<p>

"Sorry about sleeping for most of the morning," she said, yawning loudly.

"You can't help it," Bernice said.

"I think Marko was trying to find me last night."

Bernice paused and looked at her friend. "Did he come here?"

"Not actually trying to find me. I think he was connecting to my mind."

Her friend shuddered. "He can get into your head? Eurgh, that's creepy."

"It must be a vampire thing. Like, they use it to communicate. It was like he was searching for me, poking and prodding to get inside my head. He sounded angry."

Bernice brushed wet blonde hair from her forehead, biting at her lip. "Then he knows."

"I've done a runner. That would definitely tell him I'm not really up for this. I'm not surprised though. I knew I wasn't going to be able to keep this up for long. We need to prepare for defence." She blinked and suddenly snorted, bursting into almost hysterical laughter. "I sound like Edgar and Alan."

Bernice gave a small smile. "A little. Good thing my dad has this old thing, then." She patted the punch bag. "Want to have a go? It sounds like we'll both need to be able to fight soon. "

"I've never punched anything in my life," Bonnie said, standing up. She kept the umbrella covering her and Bernice took it to keep her friend covered from the sun. The boxing gloves lay on the ground, ready for Bonnie to slip onto her hands but she raised her clenched fists up.

"You'll need gloves."

"I don't think I will," Bonnie said. She swung her left fist into the bag, hardly feeling the collision of the bag against her knuckles. She was sure if she had been a human doing this she would have been hopping around in agony and screaming out every insult under the sun.

"Also, it's a good way to vent out your anger," Bernice said and she snickered. "Picture Marko."

Bonnie did, imagining the punch bag transforming into the smirking, fanged image of Marko. That cruel, bloodthirsty vampire who had waltzed right into her life and messed it all up. She was halfway to being a monster thanks to him. Just as brutal, uncaring…

"Fuck you," she whispered, baring her teeth. The anger bubbled up. "_I hate you_."

With a cry she swung her fist against, using all the force she could gather to hit the bag. It flew away, slamming against the large tree in Bernice's back garden.

She put her hands to her mouth. "Oh my god." She looked back at Bernice who stood wide eyed, eyes flickering back and forth from Bonnie to the punch bag.

"I'm sorry," Bonnie said.

"It's okay," Bernice whispered. "Um… are you okay?"

"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine. I'm fine, honestly." She took a deep breath in, trying to steady that energy pulsing through her body. That fury that had almost reached boiling point.

"You need to be careful," Bernice said. "You start to change every time you get upset or angry. Like, your eyes just did that yellow flashy thing.

Bonnie cringed. "I do?"

"If you don't want Bridget to know -."

"Wait," Bonnie said, holding up a hand. She caught a whiff of Bridget's familiar scent. The musky perfume she always loved to wear. But she wasn't alone, sensing and smelling the presence of two other people.

Her upper lip curled up and a growl rumbled in her throat. "I don't believe her," she snapped. "She's brought_ them_!"

"Them?"

"Edgar and Alan," she snarled and stormed towards the French window. Bridget already had her hands up in the air. The boys marched behind her and as soon as they saw Bonnie striding towards them, Edgar whispered to his younger brother who dug into the pocket of his jacket.

Bridget walked up to her. "Bonnie, before you start throwing a hissy fit –."

"I said I don't want to see them. I freaking told you not to tell them where I am!"

"They said they want to help," Bridget said. "Whatever's been happening, apparently they can help."

"Bullshit," Bonnie hissed, glaring at the Frog brothers. Alan moved his hand out to Bridget, grabbing her wrist.

"Bridget, you need to be careful," he warned.

"Brid, you had no right," Bernice argued, coming closer to Bonnie who was shaking. Her breathing was heavy and Bernice touched her shoulder lightly. "Calm down."

"They don't want to help me," Bonnie snapped, turning back to Bridget and advancing on her.

"Bonnie," Bernice said. "Calm down."

"Listen," Alan began but at the same time he tried tugging on Bridget's wrist, hoping to make her move closer and away from the half vampire. "We might have found something –."

"What? A stake through the heart? You want to kill me!"

"What the fuck is going on?" Bridget asked.

"Brid, you need to go inside," Bernice said. She tried taking Bridget's arm, to push her into walking back into the house but her younger sister refused to budge. Bernice glanced at Bonnie, noticing the flash of yellow in her eyes. The Frog brothers must have noticed too because they quickly pulled out crosses, holding them up at Bonnie.

Bridget shook her head. "No, I want to know what's going on. What the hell is with the crosses?"

"For me, unfortunately," Bonnie said, advancing on her.

"Bonnie, stop it," Edgar snapped. "If you're still on our side, you need to stop it and control it right now."

"What do you care? A vampire is a vampire, right?"

"I don't get it," Bridget said, backing away from Bonnie slowly. "A vampire?"

"You're supposed to be my best friend. But you ratted me out to them," Bonnie said and shifted her facial features, feeling the quick snap of bone and the sting of her fangs prodding at her lower lip. She smirked at the gasp of horror from Bridget. To bring on more fear she hissed, baring her fangs, and moved to lunge at her friend. There were arms around her waist and Edgar appeared in front of her, holding a cross in front of her face. She shrieked, flailing her hands and legs wildly.

"I've got Holy water too if you try to keep attacking," he said while Alan dragged a screaming Bridget back inside. Her screeches echoed in the neighbourhood and he put a hand across her mouth. He managed to pull her all the way to the hallway where Bonnie couldn't see her and shut the door to the living room for extra privacy. Bridget had collapsed on the staircase, breathing in and out rapidly and staring straight ahead, blankly.

"You okay?" he asked.

She mumbled an incoherent reply and he crouched down in front of her, waving his hand up and down.

"You need to snap out of this," he told her. When she didn't reply he took her shoulders and shook her slightly. "Bridget?"

"Did you see her face?" she asked, blinking and looking at him.

"I know."

She grabbed his arms, fingers digging into the material of his jacket. "Her face changed! She had fangs! She tried to attack me."

"You keep breathing fast. I don't think that's a good thing to do."

"_Vampires are fucking real_?"

"Well, we did keep warning people."

"But you're freaks! You're these supernaturally paranoid freaks – I mean, I'm not trying to insult you but you're not supposed to be right! _This _isn't right!"

"Sorry."

When she started crying, he cringed and slowly reached out a hand to pat at her back. It was the only comforting gesture he could think of.

"Can you try not to cry?"

"Oh, I'm sorry," she wailed. "Am I not coping properly? Should I be a bit more fucking blasé that my best friend is a vampire and she just tried to eat me?" She hung her head, her tousled, brown hair spilling forwards and her shoulders shook as she kept sobbing. Alan kept patting her back.

"You shouldn't have had to find out like this."

When she lifted her head up in one, sharp movement, eyes watery and cheeks blotchy, he quickly pulled his hand away.

"I shouldn't have had to find this out_ at all_," she said. Then her features softened. "Is there any way of helping her?"

"That's why we're here," Alan said. "Sam might have found a way to reverse the change. Bonnie's only a half vampire at the moment so there's a chance for her to become human again."

"How does Sam know about vampires? Isn't he new here? Is he a vampire hunter?"

Alan snorted. "Sam? Have you see the way he dresses? That's no vampire hunter. His brother Michael was turned by Marko's gang so he's asked for our help."

Bridget's eyes widened and her voice was almost a whisper. "Are we being invaded?"

"No. Bonnie and Michael were just interesting to them. They're evil but they're not stupid. If vampires invaded and turned the majority of the world into bloodsuckers where would they get blood from?"

Bridget choked out laughter and her tone was sardonic. "Oh, silly me. Of course. I didn't think of that."

He patted her shoulder again. "Are you calming down?"

"I don't know," she said. "I'll be in my room." She suddenly got up, dashing up the stairs two steps at a time. Alan heard her footsteps thundering to her bedroom where a door slammed and then silence. He went back into the living room where everyone had gathered. Bonnie stayed in her own corner, feet tucked under her body as she sat in an armchair, looking down at the floor. Edgar and Bernice were on the sofa, watching her carefully. Bonnie glimpsed up at Alan nervously and he noticed there were red burn marks on her face.

"Sorry," she muttered and looked away.

"Edgar's right. You need to control that," he said, perching on the arm of the sofa. "Bridget only took us here because we told her we've found something that will help you and we have. She thought she was helping, not trying to piss you off. There was no need to attack like that."

"Okay, I said I was sorry," she said. "What have you found out?"

"In one of these comics, there's a storyline about a boy who gets turned into a half-vampire and his girlfriend sets out to find the Head Vampire. If she can kill this leader before her boyfriend kills a human he'll return to normal," Edgar explained. "There's this new kid, Sam, and his brother was initiated by Marko's gang."

"Michael," she said and he nodded.

"Yeah. That's him. We have a theory," he continued. "See, Michael became a vampire after his mom started dating this guy she works for. His name is Max and he –."

Bonnie scoffed. "As in Video Max? No way, have you seen the guy? He's a total dweeb."

"And quite suspicious since he's only ever seen at night. According to Sam, Max doesn't seem to work during the day," Alan said.

She shook her head. "He doesn't look like a vampire."

"Neither do you," Edgar said, taking in her bright pink t-shirt and pale blue leggings. "Bet you also thought the same about Marko."

She thought back to her dates with Marko, when she had no idea vampires really existed. Edgar and Alan had been suspicious from the start but she couldn't see what they saw. Marko was shorter than most guys she knew. He dressed in his own technicolour dream coat with jeans, a wife beater and chaps that really looked grubby, and his hairstyle wasn't any different than any other biker she had seen before. In a place like Santa Carla he had looked more normal than anyone else when she first started seeing him.

"Yeah," she admitted. "He looked normal."

"It's a lead," Alan said. "Which is all that matters. Me and Edgar are going to Sam's house tonight to investigate Max at dinner."

"What if he's clear?"

"Then we look at the gang," Edgar said.

She folded her arms, raising an eyebrow at him. "So what happened to hunting me down? You were prepared to kill me."

"And I still am if we can't cure you," he said, jaw clenching.

She shook her head in disbelief, looking at Alan who had the same poker-faced expression. He nodded, agreeing with Edgar and she fought back tears.

"I'd love to see how you'd act if one of you had been turned," she snapped. "I really hope neither of you ever have to go through this."

"You chose this," Edgar argued, looking at her in disgust. "You willingly drank blood."

"Only because I didn't know what else to do. I needed to keep them off my backs somehow."

"You could have come to us," Alan said.

"And you would have done what? March down to stake them all in the heart? Have you seen the punch bag in the garden? If I can do that in one single punch as a half vampire, imagine what a full vampire is capable off. You two will be dead in a minute if you confront them."

"If Max is the Head Vampire something will need to be done," Bernice said. "There's quite a few of us involved now and we also have you and Michael for extra strength."

"Are you in?" Edgar asked. He glanced at the two girls and Bernice nodded straight away.

"I'm helping."

The boys turned their gaze to Bonnie who took a deep breath.

"Okay. I'm in."

* * *

><p><strong>Thank you for reading and please feel free to leave a comment or a review if you wish. :) Update will be next Saturday. <strong>


	19. Chapter 19

**Thank you to PoisonBones, Freax, and CastleRockGirl for your reviews! Also, big thank you to everyone who read/favourited/followed. :) I'm incredibly grateful for it.  
><strong>

* * *

><p>Edgar and Alan stayed plotting until the sun began to disappear in the horizon. Bonnie could already feel the changes as the night time began to creep across the sky. A new energy buzzed, one that had disappeared during the day. Her whole body ached for her to get up and run straight outside and into town, begging for her to go out and enjoy the night. But she stayed put in the armchair, cross legged and tensed up.<p>

"It's nearly eight. We need to get to Sam's," Edgar said, looking at the Grandfather clock in Bernice's living room.

"Remember, if Max is the Head Vampire you're calling me and Bernice first to help you," Bonnie told him. "Don't do anything rash there and then."

"And the same to you if Marko and the others find you tonight," Alan said.

Bonnie leaped up from her seat, too graceful and cat-like to be a human move, and instinctively she opened her arms out, ready to pull Alan into a hug. But he flinched back and at the same time she realised that at the moment, they were sort of her enemies so she immediately paused. They were trying to help her but they were also ready to drive a stake through her heart if their plans failed. Their first instinct had been to kill her and, with that in mind, she dropped her arms down by her side.

"You disappointed me, you know," she said quietly to him.

"You did too," he said, just as quietly and nodded to her and Bernice. "We need to go."

They collected their rucksacks, camouflaged like Alan's jacket and the boys saluted the girls as they headed to the door.

"Don't kill anyone," Edgar warned her, casting a glare back at her and she rolled her eyes.

"It's not on the bucket list," she muttered and watched the Frog brothers march outside, slamming the door behind them. She flopped back onto the sofa, head falling back while Bernice stood `cautiously at the door.

"I have to say, this is not how I imagined spending my summer vacation."

In the sofa, Bonnie snorted. "Same. Marko has a lot to answer for."

Her friend shook her head, coming to sit next to her. "All this time I thought you had run back to him. Sorry."

"Hey, it looked that way and I didn't exactly come out with the truth last time you confronted me," Bonnie said with a shrug. "I would have reacted the same way."

"Can I ask you something?"

Bonnie nodded, gesturing her to keep going.

"Do you still have feelings for him? Like, do you think if you kept giving in to your vampire side you'll go back to him?"

Every time she thought of Marko, all she could keep going back to was that image of him ripping into that poor girl's throat over a week ago. That mental flashback of the first time she saw what he really was. His yellow eyes, the blood that had been around his lips, dripping off his chin, and stained fangs kept the hatred of him strong.

"He's killed in front of me. It's not exactly a turn on," Bonnie said, shuddering. "And whenever I start giving in to this my mind doesn't go straight to Marko. Just killing. It's like my emotions are trying to shut out. I don't know if vampires feel. It's more like interest. Marko was only interested in me because I showed interest in him. Nothing else to it."

She heard the soft patter of footsteps down the stairs and fell into silence. Nervously, Bridget peeked her head through the door and her gaze went straight to Bonnie.

"Sorry about bringing Alan and Edgar here. They said they just wanted to help so –."

"Forget about it," Bonnie interrupted, flashing her a small smile. "I'm sorry about earlier," she added and Bridget shrugged.

"It's okay."

"No, it's not, Brid. You're not okay."

"Alan said they could cure you."

"We have an idea that we're trying out."

Bridget sighed, leaning against the doorframe. "This is really fucked up."

Bonnie gave a wry chuckle. "My thoughts exactly."

There was silence between the girls before Bridget gave a sharp nod, an echo of Edgar and Alan, and she looked at her friend, straightening up. "I want to help."

"Brid, you sure? This could get dangerous," Bernice said. "These are vampires."

Her sister nodded determinedly, standing straight. "I'm helping. No-one messes with my girls, remember?" She glanced at Bonnie, smiling mischievously at her. When Bridget started to punch the air and perform high kicks the girls laughed, all the tension floating away as, for a split second, went back to being three teenage girls gathering together and letting their silly sides come out to play. Bonnie was giggling until she suddenly stopped, eyes staring ahead distantly.

Images flashed in her head. Someone flying straight towards a young man. Laughter echoed in her ears. The young man's face twisted into horror as something flew closer. There was screaming. More young men picked up or pushed to the ground.

"Bonnie?" Bernice leaned towards her friend who had sat straight up, breathing in and out rapidly and shaking. She couldn't answer, whimpering as more mental images entered her head. She saw necks torn apart. Skin ripped away, showing bone and a waterfall of blood gushing out. Limbs were snapped off.

"Get out of my head!" she screamed, jumping away from Bernice and backing up into a corner of her friend's living room. She put her hands to the sides of her head and closed her eyes, like that would rid of what she was seeing… feeling…

She could feel the fear from this young group. Her heartbeat raced and her face prickled. Blood spilt everywhere: spraying, dripping, trickling into a large pool of it… how her stomach whined… her throat burnt and ached…

"Is it Marko?" Bernice asked.

"They're killing people," she whispered, still squeezing her eyes shut. Some laughed inside her head.

_You're missing out on all the fun._

The voice was faint but she recognised Marko's voice.

_But something tells me you want to._

She stayed silent, trying not to let him hear her thoughts. Bernice put her hand in hers and Bonnie grasped it tightly, despite how much it shook in her friend's grip.

"He knows," she whispered. "He knows how I really feel."

"You weren't going to be able to pretend for long," she said, guiding her back to the chair and sitting her down gently. Bridget watched them from the doorway carefully.

"I know. But I would already be dead if I never did this."

_This would be so much easier if you went ahead and killed someone._

When she still refused to answer him she heard him sigh in her head. Chuckling echoed around from the other boys and she frowned.

_Maybe I'll pay a visit to your house._

Her heart raced.

_I wonder if your parents are in._

_Don't bring my parents into this._

_Why not?_

"Oh my god," she whispered, tears dripping down her face. "He's going after my parents."

"It's a trap," Bridget said.

"I can't just stay here!"

"I'm pretty sure he's trying to lure you out. He'll kill you."

"If it were your folks, what would you do?"

Bridget sighed, ducking her head. From the reluctance to answer Bonnie had a feeling she knew what her friend would say.

"I'd find the sharpest object I could find and go to them like you're doing."

"We can all go together," Bernice suggested. "Edgar and Alan left some weapons."

Bonnie started shaking her head, waving her hands at them. "No, I don't want any of them knowing you both are involved now. You need to keep yourselves protected. If they try anything at home with me I might have a chance of defending myself but I won't be able to protect you two at the same time."

"You're already doing the stupid thing by letting him drag you out of your hiding place. Don't be even more stupid and do it alone," Bridget said.

"They will kill you in an instant. I know I'm only half but it's still made me pretty freaking strong."

"You did miss the punch bag," Bernice mumbled to her sister who sighed.

"I don't like this."

"I don't either. But maybe it's about time I face them all," Bonnie said. "Maybe I just gotta turn around and finally fight. Hiding and pretending has been exhausting."

"Do you want a lift home?" Bernice asked. She was already heading towards the key bowl in the hallway but Bonnie was heading in a different direction. She opened the French window and glanced back, smiling at the confused looks on the Teahan sisters.

"I have a quicker way," she said and casually walked out into the garden. Her friends followed her, both exchanging curious glances as they peered outside. Bridget felt her jaw hang open as Bonnie levitated into the air, an eerie screeching sound accompanying her actions as she did so. She shot off into the sky, high until she had disappeared into the dark clouds.

"Bernie, she just flew," Bridget said.

"I saw," Bernice replied, her voice shaking.

"She fucking flew away."

Bernice took hold of her sister's hand and they walked back inside, shaking from the sight they had seen. But they acted immediately. The French window was locked. All windows were shut. And every curtain in the house was drawn. With the lights off to make it look like no-one was in, the sisters barricaded themselves in Bernice's room, armed with the stakes, crosses, and Holy water the Frog brothers had lent them.

* * *

><p>Bonnie landed in her back garden, staring up at her dark, silent house. She ran to the back door, shaking the handle but it was locked. The curtains had been drawn so she could not look into the kitchen and she had to go down on all fours to peer in through the cat flap.<p>

The kitchen was empty as was the hallway. Nothing had been turned over and there wasn't any sight of her parents' dead bodies lying on the floor. She sniffed and couldn't catch any scent of spilled blood. But when she looked past the open kitchen door and into the hallway she noticed the front door had been left open.

She gasped, leaping up and racing around. She paused in the door frame, peering into the house.

"Mom? Dad?"

Nothing.

She walked in, grabbing an umbrella from the stand near the doorway and raised it above her head, creeping in carefully. She shut the door behind her, keeping her senses alert for the slightest sound or movement or her parents' scents. Anything that either told her that her parents were safe and alive or there were vampires lurking, ready to pounce and attack.

But the house remained silent and empty, as if spontaneously abandoned. She relaxed a little, moving into the kitchen where she saw a note on the little worktop island and she walked over to read it, her eyes seeing everything perfectly and sharply in the dark.

_Bonnie, we were invited to a friend's dinner party. I've written their number down if you need us and there's leftover Chicken Korma in the fridge. __Don't__ order out again. It's unhealthy! We'll be back late so make sure everything is locked up. Love, Mom._

She sighed with relief, putting the note back down on the worktop. So, they were safe. Maybe she could quickly leave and fly back to Bridget and Bernice's house…

The front door creaked open.

She whirled around, umbrella raised. Shuffling forward, she peered into the hallway and saw the front door slowly swinging open with a whine. There was nobody standing outside or inside. Everything remained empty but that didn't mean anything. She had properly closed that door. It had clicked shut. Someone had opened that.

She marched forward quickly to shut the door again. She half expected Marko or one of the other vampires to jump out at her as she went to close it but no-one appeared. It clicked shut again and she sighed shakily.

The floorboard creaked behind her.

When a hand touched her shoulder she turned, hissing. Two hands were now on her shoulders and she was pushed back into the door, hitting her back against it and she wheezed. She glared up at Marko, yet another beastly sight of him covered in blood. Red stained his chin, all the way down his chest where his wife beater was ripped. It was dry on his mouth but she could still smell it as if it was freshly drawn. Her stomach cramped and her teeth felt sharper.

"All you had to do was give in to that," he said. His voice was curt. He reached forward again, gripping onto her shoulder and shoving her back into the door. "What are you playing at?"

She scowled at him. "You knew I was never going to become like you."

"So why turn?"

"You scared me into it!" she yelled, shoving him back. He stumbled from the force but quickly regained his stance. "You bastard, you put me in this situation. I hate you! I've hated you since that night you killed two people in front of me." Her hand wrapped around his throat, squeezing tightly. Her eyes glowed dangerously "You want another reason? I want to be able to rip your goddamn head off."

He laughed, clutching onto her hand that had wrapped itself around his throat. All he had to do was give her wrist one twist and she cried out, hearing bones crack and letting go. She gasped, gently holding her wrist where she could see bone protruding from under the skin. It looked like a large bump, making her wrist look crooked. Out of nowhere, a wave of agony finally made its appearance, spreading through her wrist and up the side of her hand. She opened her mouth, ready to scream, but she was pulled back, being thrown across the hallway and landed in a tumble near her bedroom door. Marko's cold snicker chilled her spine.

"You're still weaker, half," he said with a sneer. She glared up at him, her angled, sharp features matching his own. "You haven't fed and you don't know shit about fighting."

She chuckled dryly. "Fine. You want me to feed?"

A growl erupted from her throat and she lunged, flying off the ground. She grabbed at him; they both fell back onto the floor and she stretched her mouth open, digging her fangs straight into his neck. The blood was dry, not satisfying like the taste of fresh, human blood but she wasn't intending to drink him dry. It could still count as her first kill. This was to weaken him. She snarled, biting down further when he hissed and he rolled on his side, grabbing at her hair to pull her head away. He managed to pry her off, pushing her away.

"You could have easily been another night's meal," he hissed, grabbing her sore arm and pulling her up. Tear stung her eyes as his iron grip clamped down on her broken wrist. "I gave you a chance."

She managed to change her pained expression into a sneer for a brief second. "Lucky me." Biting her lips against the sharp twinges shooting from her wrist she turned around, moving so her back was to him. It was a spin she would do when dancing with her old partner Leon, before she had given it all up this summer. The only difference was that she lifted her right elbow up and slammed the sharp, bony part of it right into his chest. Then into his face.

He snarled, his grip losing and she hit him again in his chest. Finally he let go and she dashed away, running to her room. He was already catching up to her.

After drinking vampire blood she had hidden most of her crosses away underneath her bed after the nagging headaches she got from being around them. Her hand stung when she touched one, smoke rising up from her skin but she ignored it and held it up to Marko who quickly jumped back. In her other hand she had filled an old squirt gun with Holy water. Her whole body started to shake with a hollow sickness, begging for her to drop the Holy objects but she had to keep Marko away. Before he could move further away she sprayed the water at him. Drops hit him. Face… chest… hands when he held them up. The water burned at his skin, chewing it away and he roared. From the gash in his neck where Bonnie had bit him and the burning water he was feeling all the energy he had stolen from the Surf Nazi's blood draining. His movements felt slower and his hunger was back, his body needing more blood again. He growled, backing up.

"You know this is it, right? No more chances," he warned.

"I'm sick of playing pretend," she said, still letting the cross burn her hand. As much as she wanted to drop it she kept a firm hold of it, pointing it and the bottle of Holy water in her other, good hand. "You've made my life hell these past few weeks. I want it to be over."

He smirked. "Then it'll be over. Watch your back. Next time, I won't come alone."

She felt herself shaking. "No more games! I want to fight now!"

"And I want to have some fun with you first," he said, still grinning. When she stepped forward he darted to the front door, swinging it open and running outside. She followed but he was already flying away and she collapsed on the porch, crying out at the pain in her wrist and trembling violently from the fight. She hadn't been thinking about her wrist while she fought. She reacted through instinct and anger, letting that guide her. But now she was alone to ponder what had happened. How violent and cruel Marko had been. The threats. Her injuries.

She sniffed and looked down at her wrist. She could feel her bones moving, trying to heal themselves and she gingerly took hold of it. She sucked in her breath, filling her lungs and without thinking or counting to three to brace herself her grip tightened and she gave one, sharp movement, pushing the broken bone back into place and she howled, doubling over.

"Bonnie?"

She heard Alan's distant voice but ignored him, staying huddled up on the porch until she heard thundering footsteps and hands gently taking hold of her shoulders.

"Alan! There's blood on her mouth."

She looked up as Alan leaped back, pulling a stake from the inside of his jacket.

"It's Marko's," she explained, sitting up. "I haven't killed anyone."

"You've killed Marko?" Edgar asked and peered inside her house. There was no sign of any vampire corpse.

"No, we were fighting. He was coming to kill my parents but they were out. He knows I'm not loyal to the pack." She brought her knees up to her chest, noticing the ugly bruises forming on her wrist where it had been broken. The aching was subsiding quickly now that she had set it. Alan scowled when he saw the state of her arm.

"I'm going to stake that bastard," he said, lips curling up.

"What happened with Max?" Bonnie asked.

Edgar huffed. "Clear. He didn't react to garlic, Holy water, and had a reflection. He's not a vampire."

"I thought he wouldn't be. I've been to his video store, guys. That's no vampire." She sighed, letting her head drop to her knees. "So what happens now?"

"One of those biker vampires must be the Head Vampire," Alan said. "Maybe it _is_ that obvious. We need them dead anyway so we'll go to them next."

"I barely survived a fight with Marko and I'm a half vampire," she warned them.

"Then we'll go during the day when they're at their most vulnerable," Edgar said.

"And if none of them are the Head Vampire?" Bonnie asked and her stare went straight to Edgar.

"My feelings haven't changed. I'll do what's necessary."

"Are you sure you can do this?" Bonnie asked. "Go their lair and stake them all? You've never staked a vampire before."

"We'll do it," Edgar said. "We've vowed to protect this town and we intend to kill vampires."

"And it'll be daylight. We'll have that to our advantage," Alan added.

She nodded. "Okay, there's a cave near Hudson's Bluff. Where an old hotel used to be. That's where they stay during daylight hours. I'll come with you tomorrow."

Alan gazed at the bruises forming on her wrist. "You look like you need to rest up and heal."

She waved her sore wrist at him. It was a little swollen and bruised but she could feel it continuing to heal. "I've just had my wrist broken and it's already healing up quickly. I think I'll be fine by tomorrow morning." She got up, steadying herself while her legs continued to feel like jelly.

"Should you really stay here?" Alan asked. "What if Marko and the others come back?"

Her jaw clenched. "I don't think I'm going to see them tonight."

"You've basically betrayed them," Edgar said. "Won't they kill you for it?"

"Oh, they're going to come to kill me. After playing games." She let more tears drip down from her eyes and down her cheeks. "I can't keep doing this. I want it all to be over. I don't want to be fighting the urge to kill while we find the Head Vampire and waiting for the night the boys strike again. I can't live like that."

Edgar flashed a rare, smug smile. "You won't be because we're killing them tomorrow."

"Keep yourself armed. We'll stay up and keep watch from our house so if the pack comes we'll be there to help," Alan said. "Don't go after them tonight. You need to stay here and protect your parents when they come back."

"Do you still have those weapons we gave you?" Edgar asked.

"Yeah. Plenty of Holy water and crosses. I still have the stakes," she said.

"Good. We're only next door," he said and nudged his brother to follow him back to their house. Bonnie wandered back inside, closing the door and locking it straight away. She kept the lights off and quickly toured the house, going into every room including the basement and attic to make sure all windows were locked and the house was empty of vampires. Once satisfied she shut herself in her room, keeping the curtains for her window closed. She kept the crosses in a box under the bed, feeling sick if they weren't hidden away from sight. Bottles of Holy water were in her drawer, reachable if needed, and she slipped a stake underneath her pillow.

_Bring it on, boys, _she thought and hoped they had heard her.

* * *

><p>Inside the Frog brothers' house, only Aunt Pam was awake, busy washing up dishes.<p>

"Did you have a nice time, boys?" she asked, looking back with a smile. "I'm so glad you've made another friend."

"It was fine," Edgar answered. "Where are Mom and Dad?"

"Asleep. They've been eating with me. Your dad even went down to help your uncle sort out some new stock earlier. Your mom isn't feeling to well though. I think she's having withdrawal symptoms."

"That's good," Edgar said. "That dad has been working… sort of."

The phone rang and Alan immediately darted to it. "Hello?"

"Hey, it's Sam. I tried calling you at the comic store but you weren't there. Your uncle gave me this number. We need to find that pack immediately. They almost made Michael –."

"Whoa, whoa, Sam. You're talking way too fast." He nodded to Edgar and mouthed 'Sam'. His brother closed the door to the kitchen straight away, sheepishly smiling at their curious aunt and joined Alan near the phone.

"They tried to get Michael to feed tonight," Sam explained, trying to stay calm but Alan could still hear his tone going high pitched at times.

"Did he?"

"No, he ran away. But they're starting to push him now. And I think there's two other half vampires with them. A girl and someone called Laddie. Michael says he's a little boy."

Edgar snatched the phone of Alan and kept his voice low. "We've seen them," he said. "Listen, our friend Bonnie, the one we told you about, knows where they are."

"Michael does too. He says he'll drive us to their lair tomorrow."

"Bonnie will come with us for extra back up. We'll come to your place tomorrow morning and stock up at eleven hundred hours."

"Huh?"

"Eleven o'clock, Sam!"

"Oh, right. Thanks, guys."

Edgar slammed the phone down and turned to his brother. "You ready for this?"

Alan flashed a smirk. "Let's kill some bloodsuckers."

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><p><strong>Thank you for taking the time to read and please free feel to leave a review or comment. Always much appreciated. ^^ Next update will be on Saturday.<strong>


	20. Chapter 20

**Thank you to Freax and CastleRockGirl for your reviews and thank you to everyone who read the last chapter and favourited/followed. :)**

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><p>Edgar and Alan stomped over to Bonnie's house in the morning. They were ready and dressed for the hunt, completely head to toe in khaki and camouflage. Edgar sported yet another one of his bandanas, a dark blue one today while Alan had donned on a black beret. The older Frog led the way, knocking two loud times on Bonnie's front door. Mr Casey opened the door, smiling at first until he saw the poker-faced teenagers staring back up at him and looking like they were ready to go to war.<p>

"G'day, boys," he said.

"Is Bonnie awake yet?" Edgar asked.

"I'm afraid she's still asleep," he answered, frowning when they marched past him.

"She wanted us to wake her," Edgar explained while Alan nodded politely as he wandered past her father.

"We're on a mission," Alan added and Mr Casey closed the door.

"Of course you are," he muttered, shaking his head as he went back to the kitchen. Mrs Casey was sipping at her coffee, peering curiously into the hallway.

"Edgar and Alan?" she asked.

"On a mission, apparently."

She drummed her fingers against the cup as she set it down on the worktops. "They are very strange boys."

In the hallway, Edgar knocked on Bonnie's door but there was no answer. He marched straight in where Bonnie was sprawled on her back, arms stretched up onto the pillow, her legs tangled up in her duvet sheet and her mouth wide open, letting out incredibly loud and rumbling snores.

"Bonnie," Edgar called out, going over to her and shaking her shoulder. She mumbled incoherently, wafting her hand at air and turned on to her side. He sighed, shaking her again. "Bonnie, we have to go hunt."

Her eyes flickered open. "Whaaa? Swhattimesit?"

"We could do with another half vampire for defence," he said and nodded to Alan. "Open the curtains."

Alan nodded and obeyed, pulling her curtains open. The bright rays of sunshine shone through, right where Bonnie was lying. Her snarl was almost animal-like and she darted away from the light. Her hands shot up as shields.

"_Close them!" _she said with a hiss.

Edgar shut the bedroom door behind him. Bonnie stayed cowering at the end of her bed, slumping against the wall as her eyelids began to droop.

He poked her shoulder. "Come on, bloodsucker. We need your help."

She groaned, her head lolling back against her bedroom wall. She feebly lifted an arm, slapping at air. "I can't move," she mumbled.

Her body relaxed and the sound of snoring rumbled through the room again. Alan rolled his eyes and gestured to her.

"She's going to be useless. She's been a half vampire for too long. The daytime practically makes her comatose now."

Edgar sighed, gazing down at his sleeping friend and gave a shrug. "Fine. Maybe it's best we don't have too many half vampires coming along with us. One less hungry undead to worry about. Alan, c'mon."

His younger brother paused near Bonnie when he started to leave the room, hesitantly leaning towards her. "We're going to stake Marko for you, Bon. That flesh-eater is dust."

Her parents gazed at them as they walked out of Bonnie's bedroom. Edgar saluted them as he and Alan walked back into the hallway and towards the front door.

"Doing anything fun today, boys?" Mrs Casey asked.

"Hunting vampires," Alan said with a proud smile. "Bye Mr and Mrs Casey." He followed his brother out, shutting the door behind them. Edgar slammed his fist into his palm, still taking the lead as he walked back to their house.

"Right. We need to collect weapons and go straight to Sam's. We can't waste any time." His expression tightened, narrowing his eyes. He couldn't wait to drive a stake right through that bastard vampire's heart first.

Never mind the Head Vampire. Marko was first.

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><p>Bonnie woke up with a jolt. The sun rays burned her eyes and she yelped, falling backwards onto the floor. Her neck and back ached from falling back asleep in a sitting position and she stood up hunched, slowly straightening up with a groan. The knocking on her bedroom door continued and she squinted at it, trying to form words but only managing incoherent sounds.<p>

"Bonnie, you need to wake up!" Edgar's gruff voice demanded. She stumbled to the door and three figures burst in, pushing past her.

"What the hell?" She closed the door and turned to them, rubbing at her eyes. Edgar and Alan stood breathless in the middle of her room, their clothes wet and faces smudged with dirt. Another boy, she recognised him as the younger one from the diner that day, was just as grubby and he stared at her up and down with a terrified expression on his face; like he expected her to pounce on him.

She sniffed at them. Dampness and…

"I smell blood," she said and sniffed again. "It's different to a human's."

Edgar pulled a face at her. "Stop sniffing like that."

"That is so wrong," Alan muttered.

She shuffled on the spot, folding her arms. "Sorry," she mumbled. "What's happened?" She glanced up at them, eyes hopeful. "Are they –?" She suddenly paused. They couldn't all be dead because she was still a half vampire. She could still feel that power and strength. And there was that familiar smell of blood coming from all three boys.

"Not all of them. We got chased out by one. But we got Marko." Edgar flashed a grin. "Bonnie, we got him. I staked that bloodsucker right in his undead heart."

At first Bonnie did not seem to respond. She stood still as a statue, staring at the boys blankly. But then her nose prickled, eyes watering up. Her lips began to tug up, fighting to smile. She laughed shakily, tears streaming down her face.

"Oh my god," she whispered, still laughing. "You killed him."

"We didn't get all of them," Alan said. "There are still three more vampires so you're not human yet."

She shook her head, now feeling the rest of her body quivering. Part of that heavy weight on her shoulders lifted away. He was gone. Marko was dead. He was out of her life, never to bother her again; never to push her into becoming a monster. She would never see that cold, smirking face or that angelic disguise he always had on ever again.

"I can't believe you got him," she said, her smile still showing. Without hesitation she squealed and ran straight for the boys, ignoring their cries as they backed away and her arms found Edgar and Alan, pulling them both towards her for a hug. It lasted about five seconds as they squirmed away and out of her grip. She laughed, clasping her hands together.

"Thank you!" she said.

"Don't thank us yet. We now have three angry vampires ready to hunt us down tonight," Edgar told her.

"What can I do?" Bonnie asked.

"You'll probably won't like this but we need to stock up. We're going to the church to stock up on Holy water but we need garlic."

Bonnie nodded. "There's a market in town. I'll get it."

"It's lethal to vampires."

"I'll put up with it," she reminded them. "And I'll call Bridget and Bernie for help."

"We were also wondering if you could do us a favour," Alan said and gestured to the new boy. "They'll be out for revenge tonight and we need to protect Sam and his family but there's no-one to watch ours."

"Can you and the girls monitor our house in case they hunt down our families?" Edgar asked. "We can't protect both at once and we could do with some back up. And you can make sure your own parents are safe as well."

She nodded. "Of course."

He pointed a stake at her. "I'm trusting you, vampire. If you use any member of my family for a midnight snack I'm staking your undead butt."

Her smile faded, replaced by a frown. "Do you have to talk to me like that?"

He didn't answer, nodding to Sam and Alan. "We need to get going. Group up at ours with Holy water and garlic."

"Are you going to be okay tonight?" Bonnie asked, leading them out. She opened the front door facing two very proud looking Frog brothers.

"We've staked a vampire," Alan said. "We got it covered." He was the only one who paused as Edgar marched out, dragging Sam out with him. At first Bonnie thought she was actually going to get a hug off him when he reached out his arms. But instead he gripped her shoulders and shook them slightly.

"Best of luck," he said.

"You too," she smiled and closed the door quickly as the sun began to sting at her skin. She went straight to the phone and dialled Bernice's house straight away.

It was Bridget who answered. "Yup?"

"It's me. Is Bernice awake?"

"Bright eyed and bushy tailed."

"Good. I'll explain when you get here but for now I need you both to grab all the defences Edgar and Alan gave you and come straight over."

She hung up before Bridget could ask anything, hoping that her friend will do what she said and, with Bernice, come over as soon as possible. She had a quick check through the kitchen cupboards, scanning for any bulbs of garlic her mother already had. Her nostrils flared as she sniffed, seeing if she could pick up the scent but the kitchen was completely empty of garlic. There wasn't even a trace of garlic granules. There was, however, two full packets of Double Stuf Oreo cookies that Bonnie would have devoured in seconds if she had been fully human. Her stomach would have whined and begged for a taste of those delicious, creamy biscuits and while it made those familiar hungry noises now, she knew it wasn't for her favourite snack. She grabbed one packet, opening it up and digging in to pick up one of the biscuits and carefully nibbled on the edge of it. She wrinkled her nose. The flavours were gone, tasting completely bland and unappetising. She sighed, putting the biscuit in the bin and putting the opened up packet back in the cupboard. Maybe tonight it would all finally be over. Either Dwayne, Paul, or David had to be the Head Vampire. She couldn't see any of them having somebody else to answer to. The only contact they had with people were the ones they liked to annoy and provoke, especially if the human tried to show them they had authority.

Her thoughts changed from the three remaining vampires to Marko. All she had been feeling was glee and relief. She heard he had got staked and she wanted to dance around the whole town to celebrate. He was a poison in her life that had been finally sucked away. But now she was really thinking about him. She had only seen the monster but he had been like her once. He had never really told her all the details of his turning but from little comments she knew that David had turned him on the sly and he had been trying to fight the change before he finally gave in. He had not chosen any of this and after how close she had been to completing the change she felt she couldn't judge him too harshly for taking that next step. That thirst for blood was hypnotising and Bonnie had been lucky she had caught her reflection and been snapped back into reality.

_He was only nineteen, _she thought. _He ran away for a better life, got turned into a monster and now he's dead. That's no life._

Her heart sank. Marko could have had a better life. One where he got older, became the artist he originally intended to be and had his own family. He would have been caring, creative, had feelings… he could have been human.

A small part of her wished she could have seen that human Marko. But maybe only knowing this one was the best thing. It helped her stay distant from him; keep any feelings that she started having at bay. It helped her choose a side, the right side. Maybe this was exactly what Marko needed. To be let free from a curse that turned your mind and instincts vicious and inhuman.

Ten minutes she stood in the kitchen, staring out of the window with her thoughts on Marko when the knock came and Bridget's voice called out for her. She jumped slightly but moved quickly to the front door and opened it up for the sisters.

"So, come on," Bridget said, marching straight in. She dumped a heavy rucksack on the floor. "Give us the lowdown."

"There's good news and bad news," Bonnie said, closing the door after Bernice walked in, slanted from her own heavy bag. "Edgar and Alan staked Marko this morning."

"He's dead?" Bernice asked. "Are you okay?"

Bridget, however, threw her head back and cackled. "Fucking A! They actually nailed the bastard in the heart!"

Bernice shot her sister a look, frowning and tilting her head in Bonnie's direction who also didn't have glee on her face. Bridget cleared her throat, forcing her grin off her face and folded her arms sheepishly.

"Sorry," she said.

"I had the same reaction," Bonnie admitted, sharing a small smile with Bridget. "I'm fine. I'm glad he's dead. But he's the only one who's dead. The other three are still alive and they know Edgar and Alan killed Marko. Edgar said they'll be hunting them tonight."

"What about you?" Bernice asked.

"I don't know. Maybe. But I'm not the one who's shoved a stake through one of their pack members. I think Edgar, Alan and Sam will be their number one priority. They've asked if we can keep an eye on their family tonight. Make up the defence over here in case the vampires split up to get revenge."

Bernice chewed at her lower lip. "I have no idea how to fight a vampire, but I'll give it my best shot."

Bridget nodded. "I'm in."

"Edgar said he needs garlic. Lots of it." Bonnie looked at Bernice. "Can you drive us to the market?"

"On it. Where do I put this?" She pointed to her bag and Bonnie gestured to her bedroom.

"Keep them in there. We'll sort out weapons later. Right now, we gotta hurry and get the stuff."


	21. Chapter 21

Marko felt hands dragging him along. He groaned, his vision blurry and body sagging. He felt his lips moving, attempting to speak. He tried to form words but all he managed were grunts and moans.

"Hang in there, bud," a voice whispered.

"You're not dying on us," another voice added.

Another pain shot through his chest and he cried out, head lolling back. Arms steadied him and the world titled. His feet touched the ground but his knees buckled. Hands gripped his sides and someone moved both his arms around two different figures. He muttered, managing only sounds and wheezed. His throat burnt so much.

"Here you go, pal." The hands that gripped his sides moved to his upper arms and he was turned around. He obeyed, swaying as he was moved and the hands pushed him back, downwards. His knees bent, hitting something and he flopped down on a soft cushion, falling sideways and his head met the same, dusty material.

He blinked, vision shifting from blurry to dark but a pale face appeared right in front of him. He made out wild, blonde hair and worried blue eyes. There was a familiar smell of beer and weed.

"Paul?" he managed to mumble.

Paul's wild smile appeared. "Yeah, bud. You're not dying on us."

Marko tried to move, determined to use his arms and hands to push himself up but the slightest shift in his body fired up that burning pain in his chest. It flared, searing through him and he gave a strangled cry, his body shaking as he collapsed back down onto the sofa.

"Easy there." This was a new voice. Marko's eyes fluttered open to see Dwayne.

"What happened?" Marko croaked.

Paul's eyes narrowed. "Bastard Frog brothers. You know, those comic book freaks?"

Marko slowly nodded. "I know them. Too well."

"They snuck in here this morning and staked you."

Marko frowned. He remembered falling asleep as the morning crept in. He had managed to grab someone for food before dawn began to set in, not enough to fully heal from the fight with Bonnie but it was enough to start the healing process. It had been a struggle to fly up to the bar but he managed and it had been no time before his eyes were closed and he finally succumbed to the coming daylight.

There were distorted memories. There _had _been agony at one point. Something had gone straight through him, just missing his heart. He remembered screaming. Maybe his? Voices shouted. Then he was falling…

His fingers brushed against his chest. The skin was lumpy and broken. Dried blood caked his skin.

"Marko," David said. Paul and Dwayne moved back so David could kneel down beside the young vampire. He used his fingernail to cut a deep, long slit in his wrist and blood welled up. He moved the cut towards Marko.

"Drink some of this. It should help with the healing. We need to get you food."

Marko gladly took David's wrist, latching his lips to the wound. The blood trickled down his throat, not satisfying the hunger that ached in his body but it did give him some strength. Hopefully enough to keep the healing process going and quickly too.

David tugged his wrist away, wiping blood on his trousers as the broken skin knitted back together.

"Those brats are going to pay," he said and a growl rumbled in his throat. He marched towards the corner where Star and Laddie used to sleep. His top lip curled up more. "They all will."

Dwayne shook his head. "I doubt Laddie's been plotting our demise all along. The kid doesn't properly understand what's happening to him."

"You're too soft for the boy."

"Or maybe I'd rather deal with the real threats."

David glanced down at Marko. He was sickly pale with dark circles around his eyes. His cheeks looked like they had sunken in, giving him a gaunt, hollow look. There was a blue tint to his dry, chapped lips.

"I'm afraid I'm going to have to dispose of your little girlfriend."

"Be my guest," he muttered, gritting his teeth. "But make it slow."

"I call dibs on the Toad boys," Paul said with a manic grin. "I want to have words with them."

"Maybe don't mention to them I'm alive," Marko said. He managed his own wicked grin. "If I can feed and get my health back I'll join you and give them a surprise. See the look on their faces. I fancy having some fun."

"Only if you feel strong enough," David told him. "You're no good if you're weak."

Paul quirked an eyebrow up at Marko. "Caring older brother."

Marko managed a little snort of laughter, holding a hand against his chest.

"Go." He gestured to the entrance. "You need to go after them. I'll be fine here." He flashed a smile. "If anyone pays a visit I'll tear into their throats."

There was a chorus of chuckling, a gentle pat on the shoulder from Paul and a screech as the three vampires flew out of the cave, leaving Marko in painful silence. He grabbed the back of the sofa, his other hand digging into the seat as he tried to sit up. He slowly pushed himself up, yelling out at the spasms of pain but he kept moving until he was in a sitting up position. He rubbed at his neck which had healed from Bonnie's bite, moving his fingers to his face where the Holy water had touched. The skin was smooth, untouched like his neck. At least he didn't have to worry about those wounds anymore.

A snarl formed on his lips at the thought of his chest wound. So that was the work of those Frog brothers. Those two little brats who fancied themselves as vampire hunters. All of them had been idiots. Since the Frog brothers didn't have a staked vampire to their name, David always told them forget about the teeny-boppers. They couldn't catch a fly so why bother wasting a good kill?

Now look at what happened. He was wounded and weak, something was not supposed to happen. He was a vampire. Immortal and invincible. No-one could touch him.

His throat burnt and he licked his dry lips. Every breath he took was a short wheeze. His body sagged, completely void of energy.

And he was slipping back into darkness again…

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><p><strong>Thank you for taking the time to read! Please feel free to leave a review. :) I'll updating next Saturday with the last two chapters. <strong>


	22. Chapter 22

**Final two chapters and epilogue. :) Massive thank you to everyone who has read the story and favourited/followed and to the following who reviewed:  
><strong>

**CastleRockGirl, Eveline Wulf, Freax, PoisonBones, booklover457, noushy88, Elle, and guest reviewers.**

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><p>"I have to say," Bridget said, with a mouthful of duck fried rice, "this is pretty tame for a vampire stakeout. Pun not intended." She gestured to the foil box, stuffed with steaming duck fried rice and sticky from the tub of sweet and sour sauce. "You sure you don't want any?"<p>

Bonnie wrinkled her nose. "No. I'm not hungry."

Her stomach groaned and she flinched, bending over slightly.

"Well, I'm not hungry for _that_," she corrected herself and stared out of the window again. The girls were settled in Bonnie's bedroom with the door open to see into her house. She could see straight to her living room where her mother was dozing off on the couch. Her father had rung to say he would be working extremely late at the theatre. An emergency that he wasn't happy about but Bonnie was. It meant he was at least safe at work, surrounded by a lot of people.

Bernice eyed her cautiously. "How are you feeling?"

"No different," Bonnie said and sighed. "Maybe we need to go up there. What if there's trouble?"

"I think Edgar and Alan needs us to look out for their family. If anything happens I think we're the best defence they have," Bernice said. She looked between Bonnie and her sister, the former pacing and twitchy and the latter stuffing her face with Chinese food and talking with her mouth open.

"Although that's incredibly trusting of them," she added. She glanced at Bonnie who kept pacing. "Are you sure you're okay? What's really making you edgy?"

"What if they don't find the Head Vampire?"

"Didn't you say that David guy –?"

"What if it isn't him? Or what if it is and the guys get killed in the process?"

"You're scared you're going to be like this for longer," Bernice said.

"I'm scared I'm_ not_ going to be like this for longer," Bonnie corrected her. "For the wrong reasons." She ran a hand through her hair, eying the stake next to Bridget. She took a deep breath and gazed back at Bernice who noticed where her gaze had just been directed.

"If I turn properly –."

"Don't start that," Bernice whispered. Bridget paused, ready to take another mouthful of food and she frowned.

"No exceptions," Bonnie said, her grim voice matching her expression. She stayed poker-faced at Bernice's wide eyed reaction despite feeling sick herself for saying this. It all sounded like giving up, like she accepted a fate she had been trying to fight all this time. But maybe it was time to start acknowledging the worst case scenarios.

"We're not killing you," Bridget snapped.

"So if I turn you're going to let me stalk the streets killing people?"

Bernice was shaking her head. "You're not going to turn."

"I can't stay like this forever," Bonnie argued. "I'm going to starve to death."

"The Head Vampire will be found," Bernice said. "Have some faith in Edgar and Alan. They've killed one vampire already. They're actually managing to hunt." She stood up, wrapping her arms around Bonnie and pulling her into a hug. She didn't respond at first but slowly she snaked her arms around Bernice and sniffed. Tears welled up in her eyes and they dripped onto Bernice's shoulder, wetting her t-shirt.

"I'm scared," Bonnie whispered, her face crumbling.

Bernice's voice was low and gentle. "I'm not going to let anything happen to you."

They felt two more arms around her and when Bonnie opened her eyes she saw Bridget had joined in, wrapping her arms around her friend and sister from the back and resting her head against Bernice's. Bonnie smiled at Bridget who grinned back with a wicked gleam in her eye.

"If the Head Vampire isn't there we'll hunt him down," she said. "There's a pretty, big group of us now and we also have four half vampires on our side. You'll be useful."

Bonnie choked out laughter, pulling away and rubbing at her eyes. "Brid, I know you don't like me saying this but sometimes you really do sound like Edgar and Alan."

She gave another small chuckle, shaking her head. It was as she was facing the window she paused at a shadow. It was quick, blurry and there for a brief second; at first she doubted she had even seen anything. But considering the situation they were in her instincts and experience told her not to doubt that shadowy movement near the Frog's house. Her face changed, fangs bared as she moved to the window. She didn't even notice the Teahan sisters jump back at their friend's sudden fierceness.

"Something's out there," Bonnie said. "Grab your weapons."

"Vampire?" Bridget asked. Her voice quivered; the Frog bravado she had on was long gone.

Bonnie grabbed her stake. "Expect the worst."

They crept to the front door, keeping an eye on Bonnie's sleeping mother as they sneaked outside. Bernice carefully closed the front door behind them, biting her lip as the door clicked. With the street dark and silent the door shutting behind sounded exceptionally loud. Bonnie led the way, her face still angled and demonic. Her heart raced against her chest, her whole body filling up with adrenaline, ready for a possible fight with a vampire. She gripped the stake in her hand, eyeing her surroundings warily as her friends crept behind her, huddling up close. Bonnie moved towards the back of the house, pushing at the gate to the back garden.

"It's locked," Bonnie said.

Bernice looked around "Is there another way –?"

Bonnie jumped, leaping over the high gate.

"- Round?"

Bridget quirked an eyebrow up. "Okay, that's pretty cool."

Bonnie opened the gate letting it swing open for the two girls.

"Never think this is cool," she said and beckoned the girls to come through. The Frog house was in total darkness. Not a peep inside from the brothers' family members. Bonnie strained her hearing for anything creeping about but apart from the three of them, nobody else could be heard walking about.

"I don't think anyone is here," Bernice whispered.

"Don't jinx it," Bridget hissed at her.

"I honestly don't think anyone is here."

"That's what they want you to think! This is a classic horror movie scenario! Now they're gonna jump out at us."

Bonnie flapped a hand at them. "Ssh!" She pointed to the corner of the house then pressed her finger against her lips. With a quick flick of her hand, she gestured them to follow her. Bridget and Bernice kept hold of their stakes. Bridget's hand went to her left trouser pocket where she kept a bottle of Holy water. She felt her muscles tense as they slinked over to the corner, expecting a vampire to be standing there. Bonnie was the first to peer around, holding her stake high but her arm dropped limply to her side and she straightened up, her pace quick as she moved around the corner.

"Is anything there?" Bernice asked.

"Nothing," Bonnie whispered. She gazed around only hearing the gentle rustling of leaves as the wind brushed against them. The distant sound of a car engine.

"Maybe you saw an animal or the shadows playing tricks," Bernice said.

"After everything that's been happening, I feel like I shouldn't think it's animals or shadows anymore."

Bridget yelped, clutching at her upper arm. She had dropped her stake, almost running back into Bernice and Bonnie as she whirled around, hissing out curse words. Bonnie braced her body, eyes darting to every shadowy patch for the slightest movement. Everything was completely still but tiny hairs on the back of her neck stood up from that feeling of being watched. She was sure she had heard running near them. But her mind couldn't focus. There was an overwhelming smell…

"What happened?" Bernice was by her sister's side, trying to peel Bridget's fingers away from her arm.

"Something scratched me. It went past and scratched me!"

"I didn't see anything."

"It moved fast! Like, blink or you'll miss it fast."

"Brid, let me see."

She managed to pry her sister's fingers off and she let out an involuntary gasp. It was more than a simple scratch. The gash was deep and angry, starting right below her shoulder and reaching the middle of her upper arm. The blood was sticky, all over her sister's hands and trickling down her arm.

"Um, okay…"

"What?" Bridget looked down, her mouth twisting in horror at the deep cut. "Oh my God, what the fuck? Something did that!"

"Vampire?" Bernice asked, turning to Bonnie. She froze, seeing that familiar hungry gleam in Bonnie's eyes. Her friend's eyes burned amber, fixed on Bridget's cut. A deep growl rumbled in her throat, her whole expression twisted and snarling. Bernice shifted so Bridget stood behind her, stretching out her arms to protect her sister.

"Bonnie? Don't start," Bernice warned. "Try and ignore it."

She hissed in response, running and grabbing Bernice by the collar of her shirt. She easily tossed her friend aside. Bernice landed limply on the ground, her blonde hair spilling out against the green grass, her face covered by the curtain of hair but Bridget could see her sister's eyes were closed and she wasn't moving. She whimpered, a trembling washing over her body and she looked at Bonnie. Her friend was almost unrecognisable, eyes manically wide and teeth bared like a hungry lion. She lunged straight for her. Instincts couldn't kick in at all as Bridget felt those clawed hands grab at her and she fell backwards with Bonnie on top of her. Bridget bent her arm, pressing her forearm against Bonnie's throat to keep those gnashing fangs away. Bonnie hissed, fingers gripping and digging into the skin of Bridget's arm as she tried to push it away.

"Bon, it's me! Bridget! You kill me and that's it. There's no going back." She groaned, pushing Bonnie away who rolled off and straight into a crouched position. Her friend was silent, only emitting more growls and hisses as she grabbed Bridget's ankle, giving a sharp tug, and dragged her across the grass.

Bernice moaned, shaking her head as she used her arms to prop herself up. She gazed around in a daze, her eyes squinting and face scrunching up to cringe until she saw Bonnie with her hand around Bridget's ankle and pulling her over. Bernice cursed and scrambled over. Her arms wrapped around Bonnie's waist, a desperate attempt to pull her away. Her friend wriggled and hissed, legs kicking. She was strong, almost knocking Bernice away but without any human blood Bernice hoped she had an advantage. Her friend had to be weaker than a full vampire if she was half and hadn't fed.

But despite her theory, she still felt her grip slipping. Bonnie wriggled faster, especially when Bridget managed to tear her ankle away from her friend's grip and started crawling away. Bernice's heart pounded against her chest and she gritted her teeth together.

_Don't let go. Don't let go._

As sudden as Bonnie's hunger had appeared, her friend also suddenly froze. She gasped suddenly, relaxing in Bernice's hold. Her whole body started to shake and Bernice noticed Bonnie had put her hands to her face.

Her friend gave a tiny whimper. "Bernie?"

She peered around over her shoulder and Bernice laughed as she saw a healthy, peachy face. Eyes were her normal shade of green. Bonnie's hands pressed against her cheek, plump instead of angled and sharp. Her hands moved to her forehead, fingertips brushing against the smooth skin and her tongue ran her tongue across her teeth. Those sharp needle points of her fangs were gone.

"It's over," she said, her voice a shaky whisper. She could feel the change. Gone was that energy, that strength she could feel. She suddenly felt the cold breeze and started shivering, goosebumps rising on her arms. All those sounds she had been hearing, the cars in the distance and even the screams of people at the Boardwalk had gone. She strained her hearing trying to catch those sounds but they were too far away. Her hearing was completely normal. She leapt up, unable to stop herself laughing at sluggish her movements felt after everything she did had felt quick, graceful and agile.

"You're human?" Bridget asked. She was clutching her wound again, keeping back against the wall with suspicious eyes on Bonnie.

"I'm human," Bonnie said, smiling brightly. "I'm human, I can feel it! I can feel – oh crap."

She clutched her whining, hollow stomach.

"I might have to pinch some of that Chinese food," she said and Bernice laughed behind her, falling back on the grass with her arms spread.

"I can't believe they've done it," she said and her voice shook as she laughed, an almost hysterical edge to it. "Edgar and Alan… they've gone and killed the Head Vampire."

Bonnie grinned, turning to Bridget when she noticed her friend was standing up in the corner of her eyes. She opened her mouth, arms ready to stretch out to pull her friend into a hug and apologise over and over again.

Water splashed all over her face. She squeaked, closing her eyes and letting her arms drop by her side. Water dripped down her cheeks, off her eyelashes, from her chin. She spluttered out some water that had got in her mouth and she opened her eyes to see Bridget smiling sheepishly, waving the empty bottle of Holy water at her.

"Sorry. Had to check," she said.

Bonnie shrugged. "I tried to eat you. I guess that was reasonable."

Bridget grinned, opening her arms wide and Bonnie couldn't help squealing, running into her friend's arms. Bernice soon joined them and the three of them were jumping around in a circle, laughing to themselves.

"Come on, before we wake up everyone," Bonnie said.

"And so you can pinch my food," Bridget added, linking arms with her.

Bonnie sighed. "Food…" She beamed, letting out a sigh of relief as the girls closed the gate behind them, unable to lock it but making sure it was closed. No doubt Edgar and Alan would be coming home soon. And Bonnie would definitely be keeping watch, ready to pounce on them with hugs and kisses.

_It's over, _she thought as tears welled up in her eyes. _It's finally over._

The girls couldn't help their laughing as they practically skipped back to the house. Celebration had already hit them and they wanted to bask in Bonnie's newfound humanity again. None of the girls were able to think about the events that had just happened, forgetting about Bridget's arm and what or who had scratched it. In the shadows of the street, a girl stepped forward from behind a van. From head to toe she was dressed in black, even down to her dark hair tumbling down her back. Her eyes glowed amber before settling back into a light grey and she raised an eyebrow.

"Disappointing," she said, a slight drawl to her voice and she began to float, slow and bobbing before shooting straight up to the sky.


	23. Chapter 23

The smell of fresh, human blood made Marko's eyes snap open. They shone yellow and his teeth ached, incisors lengthening into deadly points. He looked down at the ground, seeing a gasping, sobbing human, clutching onto a slashed, broken arm. She was young, Bonnie's age, but that was where the similarities ended. The girl was long legged, less colourful with her clothes and more covered up with light brown hair and brown eyes. She gazed back up at him, whimpering as she tried to start shuffling away.

"You looked like you needed a meal," a voice said. It was unfamiliar. American, with a Brooklyn twang. Marko glanced up and saw a grinning boy in front of him. Younger than him and his pack members. His features were human but when Marko met this boy's eyes, they flickered amber.

"Relax," he said, moving over to the wheelchair and flopping down on it. Marko felt a tension in his muscles, his fangs slightly bared but now he raised an eyebrow at how casually the boy seated himself in the spot David usually sat in.

"I'm not an enemy," the boy continued, waving a hand. "I'm here to help you, kid."

Marko snarled. "Kid?"

The boy grinned and gestured to the human girl. "Gonna put the poor girl out of her misery?"

Marko didn't need asking twice. His stomach ached, his throat dried up and he darted for her. She screamed at the sudden movement, kicking when he grabbed her good arm. He took a few kicks into the stomach, grunting at the collision but he managed to pull her towards him. His eyes were on a vein on her neck, blue and pulsing. He grabbed her head, a fistful of hair in his clenched hand and bit down into her throat. Fangs broke her skin, cutting open that vein and she gurgled, body going limp in his hold. He couldn't help groan in relief as the blood trickled from her puncture wounds and into his mouth, trickling down his chin and dripping onto his torn shirt and chest. He greedily gulped down every drop until there was nothing left in her body and he let the corpse fall back.

"Better?"

Marko's chest heaved up and down. There was a glow to his pale skin again and he felt ready to run and leap off buildings or shoot up into the sky. The wound in his chest tingled, healing up faster but still not fast enough to go completely.

"You'll probably need to go through more blood than you usually do. Just until it heals properly," the boy said, coming over and observing the stake wound like a doctor examining a patient. "So, you got staked by a couple of high schools brats, huh?"

"I think it's time you answer my questions," Marko said, standing up. It felt good to be able to move without being in agony. Although his movements still felt sluggish and he swayed. "Who the fuck are you?"

"A friend," the boy said. "I'm part of another pack. Your Head Vampire knows my Head Vampire."

"Why are you here?"

"My father thought Max was getting himself in trouble. Letting your pack get too big and chasing after human women again. He's been watching for a while now."

"Your father? Is that your Head?"

The boy nodded. "The Head Vampire. And he is actually my father." He stuck out his hand, a wild grin on his face. "Logan. Logan Mathias."

"Mathias?" Marko frowned. "Max's surname –."

"My dear Uncle Max. Did he never tell you about us?"

"Not much. Never said you were vampires either."

"They haven't been close for years. But father heard Max had his eyes on another woman again. This time he was planning on turning a whole family just to have a 'wife'. He thought Max was heading for trouble." Logan nodded to Marko's wound. "Looks like Dad was right."

"This woman's sons haven't taken too kindly to being turned. They're putting up a fight. My pack are over at their house now." He pushed for a connection with his mind, trying to get in contact with Max, David, Dwayne, or Paul. He found Max, sensing a fight happening and couldn't get any reply from him. But when he tried to latch on to the other three minds there was nothing. Complete silence. He frowned.

"There's nothing."

"You can't sense them?" he asked.

"No."

"Usually that means a vampire is dead."

Blood boiled in Marko's veins. His fists clenched.

"Don't do anything rash," Logan warned.

"I have to go and help Max," he growled, turning to leave the cave. Logan moved quickly, appearing in front of him with his hands outstretched.

"You're not healed yet. You'll be no use."

Marko's lips curled back, exposing his sharp teeth. "Don't tell me what to do,_ kid_."

Logan's face shifted in response. Angled and sharp with his own fangs bared and he had no problem marching straight towards Marko. This boy was an inch taller, despite his youthful looks and confidently looked down at, in his eyes, the young vampire. Marko narrowed his eyes, glaring back up. He was fully aware of his height and he hated it when anyone, female or male, younger or older, deliberately towered over him.

"I'm older than I look," Logan snapped. "Older than you, definitely. When were you turned? Sixties? Seventies? Your whole pack were nothing but young idiots, running around like you owned the place and thinking you were untouchable. The word for us is immortal, you sap, not invincible."

Marko shoved him backwards. "You don't come in my turf and insult me."

"I'm giving you the facts. You've been turning humans left, right and centre, you've let a couple of kids run around playing vampire hunter, and those other vampires went off fighting with no plan whatsoever. You've all been careless."

Marko was about to launch himself at him. He had his hands outstretched, fingers flexing and ready to wrap around this arrogant vampire's throat. His lips had parted, a threatening growl rumbling out.

But he stopped.

A scream echoed in Marko's mind. He felt something snap in his mind. A link that was suddenly cut from him. It disappeared, unreachable, unable to connect with. Yelling out, Marko stumbled away, moving to the wall where he leaned against it, keeping himself upright. He shuddered, closing his eyes as the person he was linked to faded… and faded…

"Max," Marko whispered. "That's all of them. Dwayne, Paul, David, Max… they're all dead."

He took a shaky breath in. That was it. Just like that, he was alone in the pack. The last remaining vampire, barely alive himself after being wounded. He was all that was left.

"Max was determined to turn that goddamn family. We already had three new ones initiated already but he insisted we bring more in just so he could get this woman. It was too much. Those half vampires have been nothing but trouble."

He felt himself shaking. Not just from the sudden loss of connection with David, Dwayne, and Paul but in anger as well. Fury at Max for giving in to his ridiculous need for a large, vampire family. Fury at himself for finding a girl who ended up betraying him. Fury at David for messing around with Star, not planning on getting rid of her or making her turn properly.

All these mistakes had escalated into one, fatal consequence.

Logan never flinched as Marko suddenly let out a roar. He took hold of the nearest item, a round, wonky table filled with half melted candles and decorated with stickers and lifted it slightly off the floor. He pushed, flinging it across the cave. The candles fell to the ground, a messy heap but when the table collided with a wall it smashed into rough, fragmented pieces of wood.

"I'm going to kill them all," Marko whispered, his eyes narrowing as he stared into the distance.

"Like I said, don't do anything rash."

"I'm not letting those brats get away with it!"

"You won't," Logan told him. His calmness and the way he spoke reminded him of David. His face remained expressionless most of the time. But that was where the similarities ended. In contrast to David's fair colouring, Logan was dark haired and brown eyed, much thinner and gangly with a lizard like smile that crept up his face.

"But you're not going to storm in with fists flying and fangs biting. Unless you want join your pack, of course. You want to mess with these hunters? Get them to destroy themselves. Like your little girlfriend. I sent my sister to pay her a visit and tempt her into turning. But if Max's dead maybe that idea failed and she's human again. No big deal though. It means we can come up with more games."

Marko raised an eyebrow and Logan grinned.

"And you're going to help with me with that?" Marko asked.

"Any self-respecting vampire looks after their own. And it looks like you could be taught a few things. If you're willing to cooperate." Logan stretched his hand out, still grinning at Marko. He looked at this new vampire's hand, not responding.

"I promise you, Marko," Logan said. "Those little brats are going to pay."

Marko clasped Logan's hand who gave it a firm, brief shake.

Logan smirked. "Attaboy."


	24. Epilogue

Two days had passed since the battle with Max's pack. They had all gathered at a diner on the Boardwalk, a well-earned break from helping tidy up Sam's house. Grandpa's home looked like a tornado had passed through. The living room was an absolute mess, broken and torn apart. The plumbing would need expert help after that rocker vampire had exploded through the pipes. Honestly, the whole place needed one thing: a complete refurbishment.

"How's it going in Watsonville then?" Edgar asked Sam, setting down two cups of coffee onto their table.

"It's a little cramped being a small house but my Aunt and Uncle have managed to fit us in temporarily. Compared to this place, totally normal," Sam replied with a grin. He took hold of the cup of coffee, letting the warm vapours tickle his nose and he breathed it in with a smile. He took one sip, nodding in satisfaction at the taste and sighed.

"There are a few haunted locations around Watsonville, you know," Alan added. He and Bridget had already dug into their food. Both had ordered a large stack of pancakes, swimming in maple syrup. Beside him, Bridget rolled her eyes when Sam groaned.

"Dude, he's just faced a bunch of vampires," she said to the youngest Frog brother.

Sam shook his head. "I really didn't want to know that."

"Do you think there are such things as ghosts?" Bernice asked. She paused as she stirred milk into her coffee, glancing at the two brothers.

"Lesson number one. Always assume it's real," Edgar said.

Bonnie snorted. She smiled in gratitude when the waitress came with her plate of eggs benedict.

"Never a break with you two, huh?" she asked.

"The supernatural never takes a break so neither do we," Edgar said and jerked a thumb in Alan's direction who nodded sharply. He tried looking as poker-faced as his brother, but it was hard when his cheeks were puffed out from the large helping of pancakes he had just stuffed into his mouth. Bridget snickered next to him.

"The battle face of a vampire hunter," she said, gesturing to him and laughed again when he swallowed and frowned at her. It didn't last for long when he shook his head, smiling slightly, and elbowed her gently in her side.

"We've killed our first pack of vampires," Alan said, lifting his chin proudly at everyone. "This is it now. We're professionals."

"One dead pack doesn't automatically give us expertise," Bernice said.

"Oh, guys, you're not going to keep this going now, are you?" Bonnie asked.

Edgar stared at Bonnie as if her question had been ridiculous and illogical. "Of course we are! That pack aren't the only vampires out there."

"_Someone _has to protect this town," Alan added. "This is our job now."

"You're still cashiers at the comic store," Sam said.

"Our cover," Edgar reminded him and his brother nodded. "We only need it because that's the one that pays."

"Even though vampire hunting comes with a price," Alan said, raising an eyebrow at Sam. "An actual price, I mean."

"Guys, let it go. I'm not paying you," Sam said.

"And if you so much as _think _about _me_ paying you as well, you're both going to end up with sore balls," Bonnie said, pointing a finger at them.

"We can't do this for free," Alan argued.

"Heroes don't it for the money," Bridget said. "Heroes do it because it's a moral right."

Bernice nodded. "Yeah, isn't it satisfaction enough that you've ridden the town of five vampires and helped protect people?"

"I still would like the money," Edgar mumbled and yelped when Bonnie kicked him under the table. Luckily her foot had aimed for his shin and not his more sensitive parts like she had been threatening. "Okay, I'll settle for being a hero. Even though we're the only ones who know what's happened."

"That's the best I'm probably going to get out of you," Bonnie said, sighing as she spoke.

"People already think we're crazy for talking about vampires existing in the first place," Alan pointed out to his brother and shrugged. "Is it worth trying to convince people we've actually killed vampires?"

"I used to think you dudes were crazy," Bridget said.

Bonnie glanced up to flash a grin at the brothers. "We all did." But then it faded. Santa Carla looked and felt different now. It was always rough and dangerous but knowing that vampires roamed the streets made it feel like it wasn't her home at all now. Like it wasn't anyone's home. It belonged to the vampires and while they had taken out a whole pack, there were more out there.

"There was a vampire that night the boys attacked Sam's," Bonnie reminded them. "Never saw them again that night. So there's more in Santa Carla."

"Still don't know if they were part of Max's pack or someone else," Bridget said and nodded at Bonnie. "They were clearly trying to get you to turn."

"Maybe. Or they were playing with their food."

Edgar raised an eyebrow at the girls. "See why there's no such thing as a break? Tonight, other vampires are going to wake up and continue to kill people."

Sam put his coffee down, feeling his shoulder slump at Edgar's warning. It was harsh and honest, forcing him to think about how threatened this town still was and the war with vampires wasn't over. He thought about how he had been a victim. His mother, Grandpa, Michael…

He was one of the lucky ones. The ones who had been targeted and managed to escape. But how many had already died at the hands of vampires because of ignorance and lack of help? How many were due to die because there was no-one to help them like the Frog brothers had helped him?

Facing vampires had scared him shitless. There were times when he had almost died. But he didn't. That was the most important thing. He had quickly learned how to defend himself and he didn't die.

He glanced up, noticing Edgar was watching him with a small grin on his face.

"We've survived vampire attacks. How many people here can say the same thing? Or do the same thing?" Now he looked at the girls. They had been frowning but it was Bonnie who caught on quickly to his smile and she raised her hands.

"We were lucky," she said. "None of us know anything about hunting or fighting."

"So we learn," Edgar said. "Guys, if we stick together we could make sure this town stays safe."

"I thought you preferred working alone," Sam said, raising an eyebrow.

Alan shrugged. "It would be handy having an extra pair of hands. In this case, four."

"Between us, we could cover more areas when we're hunting," Edgar said.

"Whoa, wait a second! You want us to keep being involved in this?" Bernice asked. She glanced at Bridget who shrugged.

"What if someone we know is next on the missing poster collection?" her sister asked.

"Bridget, this is way too dangerous."

"Bernie, what if Leon becomes a victim?"

That made her sister pause. Her voice was trapped in her throat, her arguments completely out of the window as she imagined her boyfriend's face on one of those missing posters. Or being buried six feet under in a coffin.

"You do gymnastics," Bridget said. "If you learn to fight, I bet you'd be pretty kick ass. And I can pack a good punch. Remember what I did to your ex-boyfriend, Kit?"

"That was you?" Alan asked.

Bridget punched the air. "Right in the fucking eye in front of his friends. My proudest moment."

Edgar looked back at Bonnie who had been quiet since admitting her concerns. "Can you go back to a normal life after finding out about vampires?"

"Could you sleep at night knowing someone was being killed by one of those monsters?" Alan asked and she frowned at him. Did they have to gang up and guilt-trip her like this? But their questions had the same answer. No. Now she was free of Marko, she wasn't completely nervous of going out again and there was a strong part of her who worried about the people in this town. Not just her family but complete strangers. Someone should be out there looking out for these people. What if another girl ended up in a position like she had? Hunted and turned into one of them, feeling like there was no way out?

"No. I feel like I want to do something about it," she admitted and when she glanced at Bridget, Bernice and Sam, they were nodding in agreement with her. She sighed and put her hand on the centre of the table. "And I _will_ do something about it."

"This is so risky," Bernice mumbled, placing her hand on top of her friend's.

Sam reached over next. "And crazy."

Bridget was the only one who flashed a grin as she joined in. "Personally I can't wait to start showing these vamps whose town this really is."

"Okay, we're in," Sam said.

Alan placed his hand on top of Bridget's, beaming at Sam and the girls and Edgar nodded in approval, being the last to join. He slapped his hand on top of his brother's, balling up his free hand into a fist.

"Alright," he said. "We're officially Santa Carla's vampire hunters."

"Aren't we already?" Alan asked.

"Yeah, and are we official? No-one's going to know about it," Sam added.

"Look," Edgar said, his voice clipped but his facial features quickly softened. "The point is we're all prepared to do something about our town's vampire problem. We need to stick together now and do our best to put a stop to this threat."

The others had to grin at his words. Edgar sounded like he was making a speech for presidency. He sounded determined, motivating, and it stirred an agreement in all of them despite how scared they were to face more vampires and dedicate themselves to such a perilous calling. But it was hard to sit back and not do a thing about it. Whatever spurred Edgar and Alan on all this time encouraged the rest of them.

Santa Carla had been a haven for the undead for too long now.

* * *

><p><strong>Thank you for taking the time to read these last few chapters and for reading the whole story! Please feel free to leave a review if you wish. I'm going to take a break for Christmas but I'll be posting the next story up in late Decemberearly January.**

**Look out for the third story in the Santa Carla Undead series: _From Within_**

**:) Again, thank you for reading and Happy Holidays! **


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